Prayers of an Equalist
by PorterMillerSeries1
Summary: This is a story of Khai, the youngest of his Equalist family who takes on the dangers of Republic City and is forced to watch through the violent takeover of the Equalist and their hatred towards benders. Or will he just watch?
1. Hear no Evil

I've always thought Republic City was suppose to keep the peace, a place for harmony and equality. Equality, I don't even know that definition anymore. What is truly equal and who are the bonds that keep us "equally" together. What a sickening joke. People vandalize, argue, fight.. murder, they call that equal? What a damn joke!

My fist slammed into the window sill, a quick pain shot through my fist but I ignored it. I gazed out into what was suppose to be an utopian society built for peace but all I saw was a disorganized city mimicking Hell. Maybe I was in Hell, after all that would explained why my brother was still in the other room. I chuckled at the thought. The massive buildings of Republic City impaled the sky and went beyond. That was at least what I could see from the dining room, my view was alright, if you enjoyed starring at a brick wall that is. Venders were out on the street, selling whatever they had. Every day seems to be about money or at least in the market district it does. It's either you pay to survive or the Equalist party gets to you, with caustic consequences. I had been in deep thought, not hearing my brother calling me.

"Khai!, you in here?" "Khai, where are y...oh your in here again. I don't understand why your always in the dining room. Is there some ancestral meaning dad told you, it seems like there always is".

Bo had effect of making things seem alright, even in the worst of times. I turned around and smiled at him, he was right, dad had always made some historical reference to anything, when he was not talking politics.

"yea, uh sorry Bo I just enjoy looking out into a city rather then a regular wall, kinda gets boring ya' know?", Bo looked at me and snickered a bit. "kinda describes your life here huh Khai?", Bo said laughing. Being the asshole he is, he was right. My life here wasn't as good as it was in elementary school. My mom and dad were Equalists, wealthy high politicians to be exact, and being apart of a public school mostly filled with the kids of benders, I wasn't greeted with the best respect.

"I'm only joking man, lighten up, I'm on leave from being overseas I got to pick on you a little. Don't be such a downer and come out to the porch, we're all waiting for you and mom made cooked goose".

I had been born into a wealthy family of four, My brother Bo was 6 years older then me, taking on the age of twenty four and reaching sergeant in the Equalist Army of Republic City (EARC).

My father Bao, was an irritable ultra nationalist who would give he life for the Equalist party. He is the representative for our district. District 23 also known as Kyoshi way. All districts in Republic city were named after past Avatars, The Yangchen section was district 4, Kurkuk's path was district 9, and there was even Roku sqaure which was the center of republic city, ironically it had a statue of Avatar Aang in the middle holding a metal globe of our world with all element insignia's on it.

When I got my mom and dad had been sitting there, starring at Bo and I as we walked in. "you better have a good explanation to have kept us waiting Khai, practicing with your blades hopefully" said Bao frowning. Big surprise that my father never smiled, not even at his ideal son Bo, nope he was all business.

"Sorry dad, I was busy with.." I couldn't find the right words, all he wants me to do is train with swords, I sat there starring at my goose.

"He was daydreaming dad, dreaming he could fly and shoot fire out of his fingertips, seriously Khai what's the matter with you, you should find a girlfriend" Bo interrupted.

"Thats not true! I just zoned out that's all nothing else", I said embarrassingly. I took a few bites out of my goose and flicked off Bo under the table, just enough so he could see it but he just did the same, smiling while he did it.

"You had better not Khai! Bending is forbidden in this family and all benders are dangerous scum who dare endanger the lives of all of us who live in our city", Bao said, acting like this was his first time even mentioning his deep hatred for benders. "That is why your brother joined the EARC, to block all benders who try to enter Equalist territory, and so will you!", he added

"Bo your twenty four now, treat Khai with respect and stop being immature", my mom said but Bo just rolled his eyes. Jade was my mother and even her cooking talent could not hold over her hatred for benders. Her sister had been killed by a fire bender, however her sister, being an Equalist Soldier as well, had assaulted a bender in his own pottery store. He had fought back but with greater might. I didn't know the whole story because my all my mother says when I try to bring it up is _"That bender took my flesh and blood that day, who needs them if they were to vanish"_.

"Jade, you are weakening our son, Bo is toughening him up and making him a strong Equalist soldier. Khai you are weak, fact is fact and being a fact I want you to train after dinner, two handed sword not your damn short sword but something that can actually do something for your body, Bao said drinking tea. I clenched my fists and stopped eating, I felt a powerful rush of adrenaline run through my veins, but I kept cool from a loud outburst.. A loud outburst, doesn't mean I didn't say anything back.

"Dad I've been training since I was seven, and every day since that day I've used different swords, Short swords, long swords, halberds, spears, maces, and a ball and chain! what is a ball and chain suppose to do besides get my tangled up with the enemy. This training is a waste of time if the Equalist were as good as you say they are do you really think they'd use a ba-"

What was I doing? I was saying my death speech, that's what. I might as well have slapped the devil in the face while I was at it. Speaking out against the Equalist party was the top thing you should never do in my house or anywhere where there are people like my father.

My father had interrupted me while I was saying ball and chain. "I swear Khai if you finish that sentence it will be your last! You know speaking out against your superiors under my roof is breaking my rules". He was furious, if he was a fire bender he probably would have incinerated me. My mother only watched and nodded agreeing with my dad, i doubt she actually meant it.

"Another thing, those weapons you have cursed are high value property of the Equalist army and you should be proud I even bought those for you to train with. You think I like having a weak son? No, it embarrass the hell out of me Khai, and by calling them useless you have once again insulted your army, your Equalist Army, so do us a favor Khai and stop acting like a damn brat and learn some respect!" He added more furious then ever.

I slumped back into my chair heartbroken, did my own father just call me useless? Am I really that much of a waste of time for him. I didn't dare look him in the eye, I laid back in what felt like my own darkness but what was really the shade from the canopy.

Today had been an especially hot and there were no birds in the sky. Not even a transportation balloon seemed to be in the sky and they're the fastest transportation from Republic City to the water and earth nations. The fire nation are the closest nation to the entrance of Republic City, although driving their on the coal powered automobile seemed a fast and cheaper way, the transportation balloon was still offered to them like the rest of the nations.

I sat there rubbing my head, "whoa dad" said Bo.

There was a knock at the door, and my dad stood up and left after throwing down his napkin on his half eaten goose. "I've lost all means for food" he said glaring at me and walked inside the house.

"You know your father cares about you Khai, you just have to show that your trying. We're both worried, you've been quiet ever since you got back from school and acting up like this is never like you", said my mom.

"Uh mom, you did just hear dad call Khai a waste of time right? I'm not a father yet but those aren't words of encouragement or thoughtfulness" Bo said stuffing he face with the cooked goose.

I interrupted my mom before she could discipline Bo, "Shut up Bo, you couldn't handle yourself for two days without mom, the only reason your in the army is because your such a failure at everything else! You probably bought your way to sergeant and never even held a sword."

Bo swallowed the mass of goose and wiped his mouth, he tried to talk be he had seemed to have eaten to much causing him to sputter a little. "Ar-are you challenging me?"

I could see that he was now frustrated and was definitely insulted. I smiled "Wow, I thought I had to spell it out for you" I said sarcastically

"All right you little shit, after lunch we'll fight, no shields, only short swords because I know how hard it is for you to carry the two handed ones" Bo said

I grinded my teeth, I would have said something back, but Bao had returned with a parcel in his hand and dropped it in front of me on the table. "Before you both fight about anything Khai has to make this delivery for the merchant Shino in district 10" Bao said in a less angry tone.

I didn't say a word, a grabbed the parcel turned around and left, I didn't even finish the goose.

* * *

><p>Hey guys so this was my first chapter, sorry if this was to long, I promise to make to shorter. I hoped you liked hearing about this loving family and there differences. Don't worry there will be action and not just the fight scene between Bo and Khai. In the city itself we'll see the true dangers within the city and later on unlock a secret within the family that you wont expect.<p> 


	2. The Sand Pit

My anger and frustration always got the better of me. My mom always complimented how intelligent I was and she admitted that it was funny that sometimes I could outsmart my brother. _"In any situation Khai_, _it amazes me that you can outsmart Bo_" she would say.

I put the parcel under my arm and left home, into the city. Once I got onto the street it seemed always busy. Venders, market stalls, and shops filled every sidewalk. I couldn't walk down any street with being offered a papaya or some type of fruit and the thing was I always accepted. My family had it perks, one being I would get free samples everyday of fruit and meat.

I passed onto one of the first market streets, which happened to be my favorite. Everyone was cheerful, prices were cheap, and it seemed to be the only market place without a chalk outline of a body on the ground. Automobiles, mostly coal and steal transport units ruled the streets but it was nice to see such an speedy industrial city.

"Khai, my good friend how are you? Hoped you saved some room for some cooked duck!", said Bozu. Bozu was a big guy, round in shape, but evidently he had taken a liking to me ever since he met my father. They would talk their mouths off about the Equalist party, they were good friends.. which was surprising. I smiled and nodded "Always great to see you Bozu, hows business? Working hard?" I replied.

Bozu stood in the exact spot almost everyday serving the best roast duck I've ever tasted. However today seemed like he might pack up early, if the lack of customers did get to him, the heat would. "More like hardly working kid, your like my seventh visitor. It's like everybody disappeared!" He exaggerated of course, these markets were filled with people from all over the city, I'm not sure why they weren't coming to his stall. Who wouldn't want a smoking hot duck leg in this Scorching heat. Khai laughed to himself at this thought. He wiped the sweat from his brow and smiled.

I started to say "well I better be off Bozu, I have to deliver this parcel to Shino in district 10, I would talk more but my father-" when he interrupted me. " Your father oh come now don't let me from holding your from your duties, here take a cooked duck leg on the way". The mention of my father made him excited. They were good friends and he knows that he was a powerful politician.

"Thanks Bozu, good luck" I said taking a bite of the duck and walking away waving. "Don't mentioned it kid! Hey tell your friends about me!" He shouted over the sound on oncoming traffic passed by him. A Coal truck passed through and the flow of the smoke had entered his lungs. I could hear him coughing and swearing at the ongoing driver.

I grinned, even for an Equalist I still considered him my friend even if he was forty years older.

That was rare, ever since my father got into the Equalism party when we moved here, I chose to ignore Equalists except for one other I met in the at the College of Kyoshi. The College was none other then a learning center where all teenagers of Republic City, 13-18, had to attend. Children 5-12 attended a lower level college.

I stopped at the corner of the market and tried to remember the direction I had to go, Bozu had disappeared within the crowds of people, and besides I didn't want to turn and ask for direction. Dammit what was it? The heat had affected my head, I had to get under some shade. I went straight across the street looking for a familiar way but found none. I kept walking straight until I came across the first shaded spot I saw, the trash ally. I didn't care I needed to get out of the sun.

Running around the corner I sat down on a metal trash can that was leaning against a dumpster. I felt the trash can crunch down a a bit but it felt good to get a little rest of my legs. I laid the parcel next to me on the ground and tried to find out my location. It took me a few minute to see _Bieu's Cold Goods _store across the street. I remembered my location and went on after a few more minutes rest. I walked for about thirty minutes and found myself at the border to district 10. It had been a grueling walk but it would soon pay off. Now my knowledge of the district borders had been strong, they were all the same and were always very caution about what people brought in.

The thing about district 10 was that is was nicknamed "_The Sand_ Pit" and it was mostly a sand bending district. It was the closest bending part of Republic city to Kyoshi Way others were more Equalist parts. Now district guards had to let anybody in their borders, that was a city rule. It doesn't mean however that they would treat you with a smile and a high five.

I had a feeling they would give the son of a high Equalist politician some trouble before letting me through. District borders had rules and in these days they were strict.

I knew what they would do to me if I tried to enter district 10 and going back to get my father's aid would not make him happy. Why would he respect me if I always went back to get his aid for things. It wasn't an option, I had to make a choice. After five minutes of preparation I was ready to enter. The side walk border itself was nothing more than a large metal door that opened vertically. The street Borders were just metal posts that sank into the ground when they allowed a vehicle to get through.

I approached the border gaurd. He was wearing a traditional sand uniform, tan turban covering everything but his eyes, and a brown metal studded chest torso peice, covered with a brown civilian shirt to make himself seem less then threat. He also had tan cloth wrappings around his arms and legs.

"Identification" he said with the least bit of emotion. I handed him my papers. When I took the job of courier for Republic City Mail they gave you many papers one of which being a quick passport allowing someone to pass through the borders, following Republic City regulations of course. He ignored my paper and seemed to have take a notice to my parcel. He snickered.

"Is something wrong" I asked. He glared at me "Come on Equalist filth you expect us to let you in with an unknown parcel? You must take me for an idiot. The rules don't allow us to check the parcel itself but to deny anyone under the age of 21", he almost laughed while saying it to me.

"What, since when has that ruled been established? I've been delivering parcels for a year now, this has never been a rule?", he could sense the frustration in my voice and only laughed as his spit on the hot pavement. I was angry not only was the sun kicking my ass but now I have this guy to deal with. I remember about hearing about some extreme Equalists detonating an explosive in district 22 which was mostly water benders. When my father, Bao heard about it he called it a "Noble act", even though nobody could find out who did it. I guess word got around in The Pit so they strengthened security.

"I've never seen you before. Beat it kid", he said throwing the parcel at my chest. "Equalist dirt", he added. I couldn't let my anger get the better then me, what the hell was I suppose to do attack him? Try to run past? No that was just stupidity. I turned around and started walking, there was nothing more I could do.

What was I supposed to tell dad? _Sorry I failed because you weren't holding my hand?_ No that's just a bunch of bull. I had so much on my mind right now, my father, my fight with Bo, and not to mention I'm not going to get paid until this parcel is delivered. I sat down on a sidewalk bench with the parcel next to me. A flute player across the street had gotten my attention. His melody's seem to have gotten my spirits up, despite all that has happened.

All of a sudden his soft melody was silence, in fact everything went silent, All sound that was on the flute player side of the street had been completely deafened by the sound of loud explosion that had gone off overhead.

The force had thrown large chunks of cement and metal across the streets. Glass had shattered and pieces flew like shuriken through anything that came it's way. The flute player that had once been playing the melody of peace was crushed by the overhead balcony that had fallen on him and now the spirit of death stands in his position smiling, mocking, and laughing over what has happened. His blood seeped onto the streets. In fact is wasn't just him. A border guards neck had been slashed brutally by a piece of glass, and many civilians lay spread across the blood soaked pavement, dead.

There bodies, some severed, now lay cooking under the harsh sun.


	3. From Hell With Hate

The Blast from the bomb had not hurt me. It had pushed me behind the bench and onto some steps but I'd be fine. My hearing was slowly coming back but I was more worried about my eyesight. Dust from the explosion coated the street, which I couldn't even see anymore. My eyes stung with the dust and rubbing them with my hands would only make it worse. I got up and coughed, my throat was so dry. I was waved my arms to clear the dust in the air. My eyes got better, slowly and painfully but they seem to ignore it once I had gotten up. I stood straight up, brushing the dust and rubble off of my clothes.

My hearing was coming through, Screams echoed throughout the street. The border guards yelled as they tried to clear the area, being sand benders they didn't have much trouble blowing away the dust that had dispersed everywhere. I could only see there silhouettes at first rushing back and forth clearing the dust, but to be frank, I wish they hadn't

Corpses, crushed beyond belief by the stone and rubble. The fallen balcony laid broken in big pieces where the flute player had once stood. But he had been crushed, and blood spilt onto the streets. "Jin you alright?" one of the guards had shouted. "yea I'm fine, hold on lets clear this dust and search for survivors" replied the guard.

One of the benders had thrust his arm out in a palm striking position and a big portion of the dust had been blown away. The thing with sand benders is that not only could they control the sand, but they could control anything that had relations with sand. This was relationship bending, the art where any bender could do the same. Water had ice, Fire had lightning, and Earth had metal.

Air bending however was sort of the odd one out. It was the only one that didn't have a relationship with something else. It was rumored that they could take the break away from anybody and suffocate them just as sand bender could break glass with their fists from a distance. These relations were found out by anonymous benders during the great war, started by the fire nation.

I couldn't stand the sight of corpses anymore, I picked up the parcel that had been blown next to me when the bomb went off. It was covered with dust, and stained with more of a tan color then it's original orange. However, the bomb distracted the guards and I had made my move. I rushed through the border and entered district ten. The thing with the Sand Pit is that is there wasn't really much sand at all. Some of their building had rusted an unusual way, creating a tan-ish sand color. There inhabitants were mostly sand benders which was how it got it's name. Others were Equalist and earth benders, you would rarely see fire or water nation. However the there had been large jars and gourds along the roads, filled with sand in case a sand bending soldier needed to use it. Majority of the benders within Republic City were apart of the White Lotus Party (WLP), which called for equal rights for benders and other political gibberish I could never understand. The WLP was named after five very powerful bender who were said to have taken back Ba Sing Se all by themselves under fire nation hostility during the great war. luckily nobody saw me so reaching the drop off point was an easy part. It took me an extra twenty minutes to reach Shino's general goods store but it had to be an easy walk.

I knocked on the door, the screen door was torn, and the glass on the building was fogged. I cracked my back while I waited for someone to answer, my journey was long and a pain but I had worse, however that was the second time I've encountered an incident in the market. My first hadn't been as bloody so this was a new scare for me. I waited for some time before knocking a second time.

"Hold on I'm coming!" shouted an elderly man that I could classify as Shino. He came to the door and smiled at me "Ah your that courier, Bao kid right?" Shino was an old fellow, 72 to be exact. He had a white beard and hair that circled the edges of his head. "Yes sir, I have a parcel for you directly from the Equalist Board of Republic City" I said entering his shop as he held the door open. The Equalist Board was the council of who determined their rules and regulation and was lead by a man called Amon. It was the party of freedom , the party who acknowledged civil rights and who hated true power and corruption. Oh sorry I had read that off the back of a pamphlet a messenger gave me, which then I resumed to crumpling it up and throwing into the gutter.

Shino was wearing a brown apron and typical outdated worker clothes, which he seemed to wear all the time. "You can set it over there on top those papers" Shino said dusting off his shelves. I did as he told, his shop was cluttered with random papers, scrolls, books and random house hold items. I honestly didn't know how he managed to stay open. "Oh yes, I guess you'll be wanting something for you travels" He said as he reach into a drawer under the front desk. He through a bag containing 25 gold pieces, after counting them, I thanked him and left. A gust of warm air hit my face as I opened the door, and sunlight had blinded me for a couple seconds. I hadn't been there long that my eyes had adjusted a great amount to the lighting, it was just that his shop semed to be directly in front of the sun and blinded anybody who left his shop.

As I started down the sidewalk I noticed something, a lone apple core was standing upright in the middle of the cement. It was leaning but perfectly straight up, perfectly balanced. I didn't really know why I had noticed this specific thing but it seemed to have drawn my attention. I decided to start walking again but was interrupted by a large object standing beside be that I hadn't noticed at all, I had been distracted. "Come on Khai someone like you isn't knocked over that easily, you loosen game man?" said another person, male, about my age, Ruan. I laughed "Ruan you S.O.B, so this is where you live?". Ruan had been my best friend since I've moved here.

Ruan had been apart of an Equalist family to but he had ignored their hateful ways, he had lived in Republic City all his life, and his whole life he and been picked on for being an Equalist. However Ruan was one of those people who did care for hate, he had been loud and obnoxious when he was little, actually making some friends, I guess they just matured together and when The College of Kyoshi came people had seen him as a funny guy but nobody respects an outsider.

"Yea man, living here in the sand pits have it's advantages..oh who am I kidding this place sucks! Nothing but crime and vandalism but it's great work for my dad", he said. Ruan's dad had been the famous head detective for the Equalist police force. He had solved almost 23 impossible case that had been closed over 10 years before the crime had actually happened and more individual petty ones like robbery and vandalism. One of the things he taught Ruan was distractions to the enemy. His dad was pretty strict, "So your working here at Shino's General store?" I Asked. Ruan nodded "Just until im old enough to join the force, I'll be taken up the family name as head detective", he said proudly, unlike me Ruan actually wanted to take up his fathers job when he got older, he was my age now.

"I'm off now so wad'ya want to do, I imagine you got to get back to your place or your dad's going to kill ya right?", Ruan said

"More or less, yea", I said, I couldn't help but show a smile. "You want to walk around a bit, I need blow off some steam, and I'm not looking forward to returning home to Bo", I said truthfully. I had made the mistake of challenging him in the first place, but my anger had once again gotten me in a new situation with him. A few years back Bo had received second in the Equalist Army for advanced QCB techniques (close quarters combat), but I never actually saw him with a blade.

We started back to the gate of district 10 entering Kyoshi Way "Bo's back from leave?, Ruan smirked then sighed, "Ya know, it's always something with him isn't it, there's always a fight, duel, bet, or some weird contest to see who is greater. Seriously remember that time you told me about that eating contest you had, what was that supposed to prove, c'mon man you got to use your head", we both laughed at the thought of my decisions to challenge him. "So what's it this time?", Ruan added.

"Sword duel"

"Sword duel are you kidding me Khai, he's going to kick your ass, he's in the army, what advantages do you possibly have against that?"

"Wit" I said kind of in a cocky tone. Ruan sighed then laughed a bit, we both did. Talking about the situations we get ourselves into always did. We'd had continued walking until I noticed that I had passed him by a foot. Ruan stood there in his traditional sand robes and sandals and was starring across the street at a bank. I walked back a bit. "Whats going on Ruan?", I asked. I caught a glimpse of a transport unit carrying metal box but it had disappeared through the ally way next to the bank. From the look on Ruan's face I knew he had gotten a good look from it. "follow me, and hurry!", he ordered. I didn't ask questions, when Ruan got that kind of serious look I knew something was wrong but he had already figured it out.

He had led me across the street into a dirt ally way, more like a shortcut through on the side of the bank. We pushed and shoved our way though crowds, people had yelled at us but I couldn't care less at the moment. We had stopped behind a rusty turned over transporter, it had no engine in it and looked like it's been there for years. I took a few moment to care my breath. "Ruan, what the hell what are you doing?", he hushed my and he quickly pulled out his own notebook from his satchel.

A few minutes later he had sketched the whole side of the bank. "What is this, it's just the bank except there's a huge whole is the wall.. and is the smoke?", I was worried. Seconds later a huge blast came from the side of the building chunks cement flew hitting anything in its path, including the car. We both grunted and laid on the ground. Dust, Sand, and smoke filled the air as flames rose from the bank. It didn't take long for screams to erupt and chaos to emerge on the streets.

I was shocked, how the hell did Ruan know that that would happen? "See, what did I tell ya", said Ruan acting impressive. "Well first you got me panicked, then you pushed some people, sat behind a crappy broken down vehicle, and drew a picture. Seriously Ruan how was that impressive", I said sarcastically, I sat there panting. The bank explosion was city accident number three for me, but number two had been much worse.

"Look I'll explain everything but right now we'd better..", Ruan was cut off by the sight of three patrolling Sand benders that had walked up to the both of us

"Ruan, we seem to have a problem, you know who we are, so for these next very long uncomfortable minutes you'll be coming with us, or die!"


	4. The Pride

"What the hell are they talking about?", I said very confused. Ruan looked terrified, he obviously did something to upset these guys. There were three of them, each wearing face wrappings covering their mouth and head only revealing their eyes. They also wore strange body armor, a leather looking chest piece, with metal wrist cuffs. Ruan started to back up slowly, he hesitated but said "The pride..", I was going to respond but he turned around and charged down the ally way.

"Run Khai, follow me!", Ruan Shouted. This time I didn't question him, why would I? We both ran out of the ally way, and into the streets. We didn't care who was in our way, if they were they were on the ground in seconds. We ducked and swerved around vending carts and street lights. We could hear the three benders behind us, they were close behind. "Ruan where are we go-", I was caught off by sand shards. Those were hardened sand spirals the used as projectiles when they compacted their sand together, but was nothing compared to an earth benders ability. Shards had been thrown left and right but never actually hit us.

Market stalls and potted plants had been either destroyed or shattered by the projectiles. At one point I had slid under a vegetable stall while Ruan had jumped over enough to get passed the hanging canopy that protected the lettuce type vegetable. We continued to run.

The benders themselves had launched a sand compacted ball that had smashed through the stall, sending bits of wood and lettuce everywhere. We could hear the vender as he screamed, "My Lettuce!", I could help have the most sudden Deja Vu feeling ever but I ignored it.

"Alright Khai we should loose them, I have a plan but we need to go a bit further are you alright with that?", said Ruan. More sand shards had shot further, impacting buildings and destroying stalls. "Run or die, sounds like an easy question Ruan, are you being rhetorical?", I said. Ruan looked back an kind of chuckled a bit, and his eyes suddenly got bigger. "Shit, Khai behind you!", Ruan stopped dead in his tracks and sprinted towards me. I tried to slow down to find out whats going on but he had been going faster and I had no time to completely stop running. Ruan tackled me, the impact was so great it had knocked the breathe out of the both of us. We flew backwards, more towards the benders.

I panted, trying hard to get my breathe back. The ground shook and screams could be heard from every direction, not surprising. There was a loud thud and the sound of stone been crushed could be heard. Ruan was on his hands knees, spitting onto the ground, and I tried my hardest to get up. I couldn't, I had been weakened greatly from Ruan's tackle. I had just enough energy to at least prop myself up on my elbows. I looked at where the ground had impacted and saw that a giant compacted ball of sand had been in it place, it had cracked in thirds on impact but if Ruan hadn't pushed me back I would have died, crushed like the flute player.

"Are..you...al-alright?", Ruan asked panting and still spitting on the ground, it was clear he was in enormous pain. Before I could answer the boulder had converted back into its original sand form. It was rising in the air almost in a snake form. The sand gripped itself around Ruan's leg, and dragged him in the air, Ruan dangling and grunting as he was hurled into the ally way next to us where we both had landed, avoiding that boulder.

Seeing that, allowed my hatred to enter my body, I felt a new power coursing through my veins. I got up, know matter how much my body ached. I wasn't going to let my friend be killed by these bed sheet wearing fuckers. One had been floating levitating with the help of the sand he was bending under his feet. The other two were on the ground, one moving his arms forming the sand that had hurled Ruan.

One of sand benders not doing anything was now smiling, a cocky, arrogant sort of smile and he started to laugh. I got to my feet holding a street lamp for balance. "Smug bastard!", I shouted not knowing what he was laughing about. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed something move, almost a morphing sort of motion. I looked realizing what he was laughing at. The snake shape sand in the air had reformed almost in a hammer shape minus the handle. It swung down smashing into my rib cage sending me flying into the ally way where Ruan had been attempting to get up. We had landed next to each other. "Khai..", Ruan sputtered out. My whole body ached, I clenched my rib cage, my finger dug into my side. I had blistering fury now, overwhelming rage rushed through my body. On my back I noticed the three benders walking closer to us.

Two of them turned around and raised their arms creating a sand wall blocking us in the ally way. They clenched their fists, compacting the sand making a fully standing wall. "Ruan, you know about us. Don't take this personally but you were in the right place at the wrong time", The bender said. "If you hadn't seen us contemplating our bank robbery plan in the park last night, you still would have been around to live in this hell whole. Come to think of it we're actually doing you a favor, now you will sleep in the afterlife", He said in an emotionless expression. So that how Ruan knew the bank would explode, he had witnessed it before it had actually taken place.

"Go to hell!", Ruan yelled still panting but regaining some energy. The bender smirked, "You shouldn't have said anything, that would have made your death less pathetic", He said. I had gotten to my feet, my hate had gave me the extra push to somewhat to get to my feet. "Kenten, watch out for the other one!", one of the benders in the back, who built the wall, informed the bender talking to us, who now was identified as Kenten. In the ally way were trash cans and scaffoldings. Ruan and I had propped ourselves up and each scaffolding and were side by side. The sunlight was most visible on Ruan's side so he was constantly covering his eyes.

Kenten began to raise his hands up summoning sand that had been scattered on the ground. That's when I noticed Ruan fiddling with something on his scaffolding. His right hand was moving up and down but I couldn't see exactly what it was. Kenten, who had been in the darker side of the ally way had the sun behind him so he had no problem getting what needed to be done. The sand in the air was growing bigger and bigger it had seemed to get. When suddenly I found Run's plan, he moved his arm back arm back revealing a shard of glass that had been broken on the scaffolding.

The glare on the sun reflected of the glass shard hitting Kenten right in his eyes, and that when I made my move. He dropped his hand covering his eyes, and the sand started to fall. I rushed in, the other benders noticed this and tried to air Kenten but were to slow. I rushed in slamming my fist into Kenten's stomach following up with a high knee to his solarplex. This combo sent him to the ground, coughing and gasping for breath. I smiled, seeing how I did some damage, what say I couldn't deal more?

One of the benders had rushed at me, I was caught off guard but when he attempted to attack me, Ruan dug his elbow into the benders side forcing him into the wall, he grunted as his head made contact with the wall, knocking him out cold. The last bender had form floating in the air and launched it at us. I put my leg on Ruan's hip and pushed we both made contact with the wall but we had dodged the attacked.

The bender followed up by dividing his arms instead of keeping them together making the sand separate into two different attacks. Ruan and I didn't see this coming, the sand hit us in the back and continued until we slammed into the sand wall the benders had made to block us off. We were completely encased with sand, holding us to the wall. All he had to do was squeeze his fists and it would have been all over. However, Ruan had managed to get his hand free, revealing him holding a piece of the scaffolding leg his had grabbed while being pushed by the sand into the wall.

"Feeling lucky, you arrogant fuck!", Ruan had said confidently. The bender grinded his teeth, but before he could do anything he was to distracted by the collapsing scaffolding. Wood, metal, glass, and wet cement has covered him. Releasing his bending form, Ruan and I dropped to the ground, relieved.

"You alright man?", I asked getting and and brushing ourselves clean. "I'm fine", I lied of course, my ribs hurt like hell, but I didn't want to seem weak, after seeing Ruan plan everything precisely I felt kind of like extra baggage. Kenten Had been skewered through the shin with a scaffolding pole, his screams of agony wailed into their ears.

"YOU! Damn you!", he shouted, crying in agony, wailing even louder then before. "You think this is over, we're more powerful then you'll ever be, and we're not finished yet!", he proclaimed. He raised his arms in the air, trying to encounter little pain as possible. He clenched his fist and the ground, buildings and sand wall started to shake. Everything converted to sand and it was raised above their heads. The wall was barley standing but it was enough so they still couldn't get out. Mounds of sand lay overhead and all Ruan and I could do was stare in horror and the sand grew into an abundant mass that blocked the sun. Reaching the climax of his power, Kenten's arms dropped because he passed out from pain.

The sand fell.


	5. Reunited and it feels so bad

I didn't know how long I've been unconscious. Two maybe three hours? That didn't matter now, right now I had to find out where the hell I was and get home... home. I had completely forgot about my father and my duel with Bo. There going to think I was fooling around, I had never been this late before. Then again I don't know if it was dark out, maybe I dreamt the whole thing.

All right even I couldn't fool myself with that one, it was even a laugh to even try to pull something like that off. When I first started to pull through from my unconscious state, my eye sight was blurry, and my hearing was dull. I attempted to life my head, to see where I was but all I saw was blur, that was until the blurriness started to shift.

Five minutes later, a bucket of ice cold water had been thrown at my face. Unpleasant as it sound, the water had felt good after being in the heat all day. I felt saw in my hair, it was still falling onto my shirt, it had been grinding in my shoes in between my toes, not a good feeling after been buried in mounds of it. "Hey..buddy, you awake?".

It was a voice I was unfamiliar with, at first I thought it was Ruan but this one sounded different. The sound of Ruan's name helped me get back my mind back to what was happening. I had realized, that I had been kneeling this whole time, and my wrists and ankles were sore. "Maybe, I should throw a second bucket of water, it was funny watching him jump".

This time it was a female voice, unlike the male that had spoke first, there had been no response. A few minutes later a second bucket of water was, smashing into my face, she dropped the bucket onto the ground. I didn't know whether I wanted to get splashed or was to weak to talk but it had felt good a second time. The second splash had also made me realized more about my surroundings, like the fact that my wrists and ankles were tied together with rope. I could also here them talking a bit more and the sound of something scraping against metal.

"Sand.. fucks, I'll kill you!", I managed to sputtered out. My clothes and hair were soaked with water and wet sand. "Well, looks like someone came back to us", said the male voice. I propped my head up more, my neck ached. I squinted my eyes trying to get a good look at my kidnappers. One was sitting on table, legs propped up on the back seat of a chair, and the scraping sound came from him. "To answer your, heartwarming question, no were not those sand benders, and I'd like to see you try", said the male voice again.

My head dropped, my eyesight was dimming again, I could feel my legs and arms fall asleep. "Shana, again", he said. As I was coming to the realization of identifying the female voice, she had poured a third bucket of water on me, this time it was colder then ever. I jumped, but her hand was ready, pressing against my should and forced me back down on my knees. After the water cleared i could finally make them out, One of them, the male, he had brown hair and was about my age, maybe older but he was wearing unusual black leather armor.

He was scraping a combat knife against a whetstone to make it sharper, each time the blade made an almost screeching sound as his hand pulled the knife down. He was grinning, he knew the noise made me uneasy. "What side are you on!", I barked at him. He stopped grinning and put down his knife on the table and brought down his legs so they dangled over the table until they touched the ground, and sighed. "The side with a bigger boom and the one who saved your life", he said.

He was right, he had saved my life or he had brought me to his camp to hold me for ransom. Either way I still didn't trust him. "Look around, Khai you can't leave here conscious so you might have well get comfortable, and stop trying to mess with your binds I can see your wrists moving", he said glaring at me. He was right I had been trying to escape but it was no matter, even if I'd untie my arms, it would be hard trying to untie my ankles discreetly. However the fact he knew my name was frightening.

I looked around trying to get any knowledge of the place besides it being a cave. There was a couple of tables, a third had been broken in half, boxes and wooden crates piled on one another. There were emptied sacks on the table and there was no sign of anybody else. There was, a girl sitting on top of a bookshelf wearing the same armor as the guy. She had one leg dangling, swinging back and forth and glared at me once we made eye contact, although I could identify her as Shana. I turned back to the man. "So, where's you real hideout, you honestly can't make me believe that you and..Shana, are the only ones who live in this dump", I said.

The guys smiled, "Smarter then you look, that's always a difficult sign when your up against someone like Shana and I", he said again, this time cracking his knuckles in his fist. Intimidation, he was trying to look tuff, but my plan was already on way. "Who are you and how the hell do you know who I am?", I said calmly this time, I had to make him think I was on his side, starting with my personality. "Porter, Jonathan Porter.. Junior actually but don't get any funny nicknames going. Just call me Porter, everyone else does", Porter said. He hopped off the table, and walked towards a crate, pulling out a couple of apples. My stomach ached, I was so hungry my mouth drooled.

Porter took a few steps closer to me and chuckled, he threw the apple and Shana and she caught it with one hand and took a bite. I ignored the temptation of hunger, "That doesn't answer how you know who I am", I said to him. Porter took a few bites from his apple, I could tell he was thinking to himself. He looked at Shana and smiled, she smiled back, I knew they were thinking the same thing. "That was quite a show you put on in the city, escaping those sand benders", Porter said. I couldn't help but grin. "When the s.o.b dropped the damn desert on you, me and Shana here went to the tasks of fishing you out, you could've suffocated but we wanted to aid you. We know about The Pride and their terrorist ways, so we decided to kick some ass on our way back to..our place, your welcome", said Porter. "As for your names, I heard those benders called them out as they chased you so guessing who was Ruan and who was Khai, 50/50 so I took a guess.

Ruan, I had completely forgot about my best friend. Was he alive? Did they dig him out? for all I know Ruan could be stilled buried under the mound of sand.. dead. "Where's Ruan, did you save him to?", I asked without worry. I didn't want to sound weak especially if front of these two but I couldn't help feel some bit of cowardice. "The sand tribesman if fine, In another part of the cave still unconscious, tied up", Porter replied. A great feeling of relief entered my body and a bit of stress left.

It was time to put my plan to the test. Porter was starring at me, reading me. He sized up my skills, looking to find my weakness. I tried to keep him out of my mind but he could see this, he grinned. "Now that we've been acquainted, do you mind cutting me loose, I promise I won't do anything stupid", I lied. Porters grinned failed as he sat back up on the table and he looked over to Shana and signaled her with a nod. She was behind me so I couldn't tell exactly what she was doing. I heard a thud, guess it was her dropping from the bookshelf, I heard her walk over to me and felt her hand brush against my ankle. She took out a combat knife, the same as Porters and cut through one of my ankle straps.

I was putting my plan into effect, I knew what i had to do but I needed patience. She cut through a couple more straps, my ankles were free. It felt good reliving my binds from my sore ankle. She then proceeded to cut through the straps of my wrists, I grunted as the knife accidentally nicked my hand. "Don't be baby, suck it up", Shana said. I wanted to smile so bad, nobody knew what was going to happen next but me.

Before Shana cut through my final strap Porter said, "When you do attack me, choose which moves your going to carefully", Porter said fiddling with the cuffs on his wrists. I couldn't believe it, I was in awe, Porter had seen right through my plan. He was playing me, he didn't now anything, but he had guessed it. My head hurt, and the ropes were getting loose. I had to act fast and change my plan, there's no way they would see me coming. The final ropes had been cut through and my wrists were free, my planned had started.

I shot up my elbow, slamming it under Shana's jaw, sending her off balance and she fell. I then proceeded to charge Porter, who had been grinning the whole time. I ran toward him, fist raised high and was about to strike when he did the unthinkable to me. Blocking my punch with his forearm he then kicked my foot out from under me sending me off balance. He then put him free hand on my back, spun me around and slammed me against the table with my left hand behind me. I grunted with pain as every time I struggled, he kept pulling my arm.

"Now listen to me, you lying fuck", Porter said calmly. He lifted my head a little sliding his wrist in between my neck and the table and a hidden blade has shot out with an unusual click. My eyes widened with the blade so close to my vitals. "We will help you, aid you, and even bring down the Equalist takeover. When it does take over and it will take over, there will be massive genocide beyond belief against the benders, shattering the dreams of Firelord Zuko and Avatar Aang. So I need your help in doing this, I need to know that I can trust you and you wont double cross me again, do you understand!", demanded Porter.

Once again my anger had gotten the best of me. "Yes, I will cooperate", I said. Like I had a choice. "Good, well it seems we have discussed all that we needed to, so we'll release you, but like I said you cant leave here conscious", said Porter now smiling. He hopped off the table and walked closer and twirled his finger in a circular motion. I hesitated and turned around slowly revealing a furious Shana from when I struck her in the jaw.

"I'm going to enjoy this", she said cracking her knuckles, and with one swift punch it was lights out for Khai.


	6. And all for one

I hadn't awaken for a half an hour, Ruan actually woke up first, dazed and didn't remember at all what happened in the cave. Ruan pushed and shoved me trying to get me awake. "Hey, Khai get up, c'mon it's dark, what the hell happened last night?", said Ruan who kept pushing me. I started to wake up, my head felt as if it was hit by a train. I tried to sit up, my sight was once again blurry. I was really getting sick of that. My whole body ached, it took me awhile before I could stand up.

"Wow, man you look like a train wreck, especially with that black eye", Ruan said chuckling. I touched my left eye, to feel a quick sharp sting and then a burning feeling. I slowly got to my feet , cracking my back on the way up. "Thanks, and you beautiful yourself", I said sarcastically. He laughed a bit, and started to look around, trying to get a fix on where we were.

"The park, I recognize the buildings around here, we're still in The Sand Pits but we're in the park. By the way how did we escape those sand benders? All I saw was the sand collapse on us and blackness. Woke up here hours earlier and I saw you sleeping in those leaves", Ruan said still brushing sand out of his clothes. I sort of ignored his question when he told me where we were. "The park are you kidding me! My dad going to kick my ass, he's not going to believe I fell asleep in the damn park, he'll probably say I took a dirt nap while I was at it", I had suddenly gotten full strength to my legs. I walked around looking at my surroundings, even though I knew now where I was.

Ruan yawned and rubbed his eyes. He walked up behind me and tapped me on the shoulder twice, "Sorry bud, but I got to get home, ya know? At least one of us will be alive," Ruan said laughing. I glared at him as he started walking down the road yawning and stretching. I was lucky he ignored the question of how he got to where he was. Being as sleep deprived as he was, I'm just glad his stupidity kicked in while it could. I knew where I was now, thanks to Ruan. I started walking home, It would be quite a walk in the dark but at least I had something to think about.

* * *

><p><strong>Porter and Shana<strong>

"So what makes you think that he can help you? He can't even make it more obvious that he's going for an attack", said Shana. The both of them had been sitting on top of the public library, starring at Khai as he walked down the road. Porter thought about this but he had some idea of what he was going to do.

"Shana, we already know that the Equalists are going to overthrow the city, we need as much help as possible, even I can't hold off an army alone", said Porter.

"Yes I know Porter but him? Of all people, I'd rather take his friend, Ruan", she said ending her sentence quietly. Porter look toward her and smiled. "I'll admit observing Ruan's past was alright but we need more then what he has, we need someone who has fire in their heart", Porter replied. He took out his wallet, inside one of the folds had been a picture. It had been a girl.

"Is that her", Shana said calmly. Porter squeezed his free fist until the point where it hurt. He glared at the picture, fury ran through him, not at the girl personally but the events the had happened. He put the picture back in his wallet. He slowly got up, he could no longer see Khai, he looked back to Shana. "look, point is I want someone strong, Ruan's fine, but Khai has that fire within him, inside his heart. I observed this when I saw those sand benders attacking them", said Porter, hopping down ledge by ledge until he got into the park where Khai and Ruan once laid, Shana followed. "Shana lets go, we got to be somewhere.

* * *

><p>I had gotten to the district border, entering Kyoshi way hadn't been a problem since I had finished my job and left the parcel at Shino's, whatever he did with it. However I could not stop thinking about what happened last night with him, With Porter. When he countered my attack I was completely surprised. I thought he had underestimated me but it had been the exact opposite. I stretched my arms into the darkening sky, walking home in soaking wet clothes, which I'll admit he dried a little, filled with sand hadn't been the best thing I could ask for but just how Porter analyzed my every move and countering it was strange.<p>

Before I even attacked him he knew, he even warned me, he read me like a book and knew just what I was going to do. I couldn't help but think about that girl Shana and how she had given me this agonizingly painful black eye. How was I going to tell Bao this? I walked on in the night and passed by all the other markets. They were closed of course although some had left their carts outside, but nothing was in them. I had passed by Bozu's stand, the place still smelled like food, grease stains poured of the cart and I could even see some cooked into the ground from the sun.

I smiled as I passed it, Bozu had always had given me a good attitude and was one of those people I completely forgot was an Equalist, like Ruan when he wasn't acting smug. It was hard going to face my family again but somehow Porter gave me hope, the Equalists were a strong force but I had faith. I had turned onto my street, I must've admit I was nervous. I walked past the brick wall that surrounded my front and back yard. Before I had passed through I stopped at the gate. I leaned against the wall, my heart was pounding. How was I going to face my father? I know this was only a courier job but I've never been this late.

I swallowed a couple of times and starred at my front door. I cursed and slowly started to walk up to the front door. I reach out for the brass doorknob, breathing heavily I turned the knob but before it could go further it jammed. I turned it back and forth my hand was going insane but the doorknob kept jamming. The house was locked.

"Shit, not now", I said out loud, I had no choice, I pounded my fist against the door. There was no answer. Harder and harder I slammed my fist against it waiting for an answer. Why the hell did they lock me out, even they weren't this cruel or at least my mother wasn't.

"What's wrong no answer?", a deep voice called out. I looked around, nobody in sight. "Locked out? No answer, No help...", said the voice again. I got nervous. I looked everywhere my front yard was clear, there were no bushes or hedges for a hiding spot. I started back down the steps to the front gate but saw nobody beyond the surrounding brick wall. I walked back unto the front steps again searching for the voice. "That's quite a shiner", he said again. I had enough, "Alright who's there and why the hell can't I get into my home", I said. I felt foolish, it was like a was talking to nothing, but somebody was there. I heard a thud and quickly turned around without hesitation.

Right there in front of me was an Equalist soldier in full armor. He had his Red arm and leg guards that went up to his shoulder and knees. Underneath had been some hard leather and metal that protected the vitals. He wore a grey buttoned, cloak like robed that he wore with the hood up. Covering his face was a silver mask that had a large red dot on his forehead. People had debated that the face of the mask had either been smiling or frowning, but to me he just looked like more emotionless Equalist trash.

Before I could move he struck me in the ribs, in a spot that would have blocked my bending if I was a bender. It had gave me a weird feeling where I became sick to my stomach, he followed up with a spinning side kick to my chest. I grunted as I hit the ground, I cursed at him and quickly got to my feet, I wasn't going to let myself be beaten again. I ran towards him, he launched out his fist, more of his knuckles on his first two fingers used to render limbs useless if they hit in the right spot.

I had seen this coming, from watching my brother before in his sparring competitions in the academy. I blocked with my forearm, mimicking what I saw from Porter. I used my foot to connect with his legs sweeping him upward and trying to spin him around. He had some moves of his own, instead of fighting he allowed me to spin him. There he jumped up open my back and he had used this to my advantage to grab my arms and pull it behind me like what Porter had done to me.

I couldn't stand up much longer, my legs gave out and I fell to the ground with the Equalist standing. "Looks like someone learned some knew moves, if only you had been taught to use them properly", he said with a confident tone. He had pinned me to the ground sitting on my legs and grabbing my arms, pulling it. He laughed. He leaned forward pushing my face into the dirt but this time he had been standing a little, and not on my legs. "Your cocky, and unorganized", he said to me. "You wanna bet your balls on that one", I said.

When he had gotten up closer to me, he freed my legs. I pulled back my leg as far as I could and pushed up and was also forced to go out. My leg push up enough to hit him in his groin. He fell back in agonizing pain, moaning. I quickly got up and turned towards him lashing out with my foot. He had enough speed to get his hand up but not enough strength to hold back my kick. It connected with his hand pushing back into his face sending him backwards. I tried to combo with a hook punch but he had caught that, still in a kneeling position he and lashed out with his free hand and hit my stomach.

I stumbled back holding my stomach, I panted hard trying to get the wind back he knocked out of me. "Why are you after me!", I said with pain sounding in my voice, my stomach sent pain all through my lower torso. He didn't say anything now that he was back on his feet his began chasing after me. I ran, this became a game of cat and mouse. If i could get to the backyard tool shed before he could catch me, I could find a weapon. I looked back seeing where he was, but he wasn't there, disappeared again.

I caught something in the corner of my eye, the hooded Equalist now ran on the roof of my home, or at least the lower part of it. In his hand was a special type of weapon. He was swing a long cord and on each ends were to metal balls, one heavier then the other. My eyes widened, and turned around and started running. "You can't run coward!", said the man. He threw the weapon and it hit my legs. The small ball using the weight of the big ball to its advantage, wrapping itself around my legs.

I collapsed to the ground, and the man jumped onto the ground. He walked over to me and pulled a small dagger, hidden under his hard leather torso piece. I didn't know what to do, I had to find out something about this guy, his weakness, relativity, or anything but nothing came to mind with that mask on. So I improvised as he came closer with the dagger drawn, I used the weight of my lower half to roll backwards. Since my hands were free I had no problem using them to launch my legs at the Equalist. Hitting him in the chest and knocking him down.

He groaned as my two feet connected with his chest. On the ground moaning I crawled over to him and finished him off, dropping both of my heels, onto his mask, cracking it. The mask had probably shielded his face from most damage but the best I could imagine or hope for was that I broke his noes. "All right prick, you had your laugh, who are you?", I said switching my body so now my face meets his.

I pulled back his hood and took off his mask.


	7. Equalist Bons of Sitches

"What the hell Bo, I thought you wanted a sword fight", I said angrily. My legs had still been tangled by his weapon. I tore and pulled at the string but It did nothing, and I knew that. Bo laid there in his Equalist uniform. He had changed, somehow when I was gone on that courier's assignment. He had gotten darker. He didn't say anything, as I was attempt to rid myself of the ropes, he slowly got up and starred at me. It was weird, it seemed somehow everyone I last met before I left had gotten darker ever since I met Porter.

He fully stood up now, as I still sat on the moist grass. "You want to become stronger, embrace the power that is given to you", he said with no expression on his face. I looked at him like he was insane, he was insane, he had gone completely mad. What had happened after I left? "What wrong with you? Your completely psychotic and what power!", I said. At this point I had stopped attempting to remove the strings and just starred at him. It seemed like his whole face got darker, his eyes pierced through mine.

"Power? What the hell did you think this was a joke? Some training exercise?", I yelled to him. He chuckled, he was about to answer my question until something was caught in his eye. It was the dagger I had knocked out of him earlier. He walked over to it, it sat lying their in the grass, with the blade stuck into the ground, he slowly pulled it out. I started to struggle again with the ropes. "Tell me Khai, have you ever been in a situation where you felt hopeless? Lost, beyond all recognition of being saved and somehow you felt a brief rush of energy and you feel invincible?", he said walking back to me.

When he said this I couldn't help but remember back at that ally way with Ruan. That one sand bender, Kenten attempted to kill us but Ruan blinded him and somehow out of the protection of my best friend, I found some extra power, the extra push needed to take down Kenten. I didn't say anything, I didn't need to he already knew that I have felt it. He knelt down and pointed the knife at my black eye, I was uneasy at first but then he said, "It's called hatred, and by the look of that black eye, it seems like you have already sued it to your advantage", he said smiling.

I looked down for a bit, I felt like a coward but I hated using "hatred" as a means of extra power. I'd rather use my own skill then blood rage to defeat my enemies. "Yea so what gave you the idea to attack me, you could have seriously hurt me man?", I said. I couldn't find right words to counter his, for once he seemed to outsmart me without the use of insults. Bo lowered his knife to my entangled legs, "Your weak", Bo said starring at me.

With one swift movement of his arm the knife had cut straight through the cords that bonded my legs. We both got to our feet, I struggled to get to my feet first but Bo had calmly beaten me. Bo sheathed his knife under his torso piece. I backed up until my back hit the too shed. It hadn't been anything special just a bunch of gardening tools my mom had, but she still like to keep it locked up. Bo walked closer to and grinned, almost an evil grin. I hadn't expected for Bo to have get this dark over a short while, he had definitely changed.

His fist slammed against my stomach, I hunched over taking in a big breath of air but his hand caught my face and he wrapped his hand around my neck. I choked and gasped for breath, what the hell is he crazy? I wrapped my hand at his fist trying to pry it off, and when I got close to it, he would just hit my stomach again. I was eighteen and still couldn't defend myself from him, I felt weak. I had usually had to advantage over him verbally, but since my absence he had gotten a lot more corrupt and evil. he had had the advantage over me, physically and verbally.

"You disrespect dad, if you aren't willing to learn from him, then maybe I can convince you to, any means necessary", Bo said. That last part made him smile manically. "Fuck...you", I managed to sputter out. It wasn't my best or wisest idea to insult him, especially with the position I was in, but what did I have to lose? Bo had no emotion, he slammed his fist into my stomach again, realizing his grasp around my throat he proceeded with a hammer fist to the side of my head knocking my to the ground. I tried to get up but he had kicked me in the abdomen. I grunted as I rolled on the ground clutching my abdomen in pain.

At that point I felt what he had been talking about, I felt the hatred course throughout my body. I had to admit the rush felt good, felt intense but I didn't like using it. It was an immoral and dishonorable way of fighting. Then again I had to think, was what Bo doing any more dishonorable then an extra rush. "Spineless fool!", Bo said swing his foot, that when it really kicked in. The kick had shot a quick pain through my hand once I caught it but it was ignored. Pulling it higher I followed up by spinning my body around knocking Bo's foot off the ground that had been stabilizing him.

Bo hit the ground hard with a loud grunt, I tried to scramble to my feet, which had been my greatest mistake. By then my rush had ended and Bo's had begun, on the ground he slammed his heel into my rib cage sending me rolling onto my back. He laughed as he got up without struggle. I had no more energy to carry on, I had wasted it on that last move. "You had it but then you lost it! Like I said Khai your weak, your spineless, and you don't have enough damn hate!", he said, almost in a psychotic tone, or at least that wasn't what it sounded like. He walked over to me and looked down starring into me. Sweat dripped from my brow, my whole body cooked from the inside and I could tell that he was burning up to.

He lifted up his foot and pressed his combat shoe against the side of my face, the moisture and mud combined rubbed onto the side of my face as he pressed down slowly. "You know what, you never will!", Bo said finishing off his sentence. He lifted his shoes up residue fell he wasn't letting me go he was preparing to drive his foot into the side of my face, which he would have been successful in giving me a broken noes or a fractured jaw if he continued but we had been interrupted. I heard the sliding glass door open from the front porch and with it a shout of fury. "Bo what are you doing! Stop this madness and help up your brother now!", it had been my mom...coming to my rescue.

She raced over and knelt down to me but at that time I had already begun to get up. Bao had done the exact opposite, he took his time and by closing the glass door and then approached Bo. "I'm fine mom, just let me get up", I said. She looked nervous and worried, and the sight of my black eye did not make it any better for her. I noticed that dad had walked over to Bo pushing him against the wall, Bo didn't resist. "What the hell happened Bo?", said Bao. I could tell his was somewhat upset for all the bruises on me. Bo had explained everything and added something of his own, "All I was trying to do was make him more like me, more like us. I couldn't have let him disrespect you at dinner last night so I decided to toughen him up if he was going to be an Equalist", Bo said calmly.

Bo and Bao walked completely behind the shed, they spoke quietly so I couldn't make out anything they said. Jade reached for my face to see the damage. "Khai your eye!, she said shockingly. I looked down, I was both angry and embarrassed, as much as I respected my mother I didn't want her to fight my battles. "Forget it mom, just leave me alone..", I said. I really didn't want to say that, she was the only one in the family who never shouted anything about the Equalist party. We both got to our feet, I brushed off the dirt off my clothes and mud off my face.

"Khai..", Jade started to say but it seemed like she couldn't find the right words. She was stressed, and I didn't blame her. Being with these two die hard Equalist, could put anybody in pain, I just couldn't bare to see my own mother this way. It was quiet, we didn't speak, I wanted to say something encouraging but just like her I didn't have the right words. "I did this for you and to make our family stronger", said Bo as he and Bao came around the corner. "It's over now, complaining now would just be more of an annoyance to me", Bao said.

Bo had gone and picked up his mask, fitting it together like a puzzle, it had been cracked from my heel drop onto his face. He had walked back into the house that's when Bao had walked over to me. I couldn't help but get a little nervous as he walked towards me, he didn't look to angry but I bet he had a long night and just wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible. However, it felt weird being afraid of your own father, It wasn't weird at all, it was just sick and wrong! "Khai, get to your room, you have school in the morning, no questions this is the last I will hear of this", Bao said with a stern voice. I couldn't do much now. "Yes sir", I said with much grief.

I walked back to the house, and couldn't hep overhearing my parents talking. "Do you think that was to harsh?", said jade. "Not at all jade, Khai is to weak, Bo was doing him good by fighting him", Bao replied. The rest, I blocked out of my mind and walked into the house. I heard Bo curse when I walked passed his room which was on the ground floor. I cracked open the door and looked inside. He was trying to fix his mask, the crack couldn't have been more perfectly diagonal but it didn't reach all the way across the crack started about 5cm inwards on the mask and left it the same way.

Serves him right, I continued towards the front and and immediately turned upstairs, entering my room. My room hadn't been much but it had the things essential for me. It had a dresser, a bed, a closet, the Equalist flag hung above my bed and I didn't dare to take it down. I also had a window with a beautiful view of the brick wall that surrounded my house. I jumped into my bed and starred at the ceiling. I didn't know when i would see porter again but I had a feeling there was more to him then I had known from our encounter in the... wherever I had been, since Shana had knocked me out, they dropped me off in the park along with Ruan. I had School tomorrow at the college of Kyoshi and I "couldn't wait" to get back since I've been on vacation.

My eyes got very heavy all of a sudden, and fell asleep.


	8. College of Kyoshi

I was nearly to The College of Kyoshi, my school I go to that teaches the usual subjects. We have Math, History, Science, Literature and all the usual B.S that us students just "Love". Now the school itself was named after Avatar Kyoshi, an Earth bender born and raised on some peninsula somewhere close to the Earth Kingdom. Ba Sing Ce before was ruled heavily by some warlord but I haven't gotten that far in my history class, nor do I really care, today's history and future seems more important. I had actually walked the opposite from the market streets, instead I walked through a park, my favorite part of Republic City.

No battle's, fights, assassins or bombings. It seemed like a utopian society all by itself, knock on wood. When your not continuously running into tree hugging nomad's the place was nice. However when I walked to school, it was usually on the edge, unless I had extra time then I cut through the park but the walking on the edge of the park was the quickest.

Where I walked was in between. That's when I saw out of the corner of my eye one of those environmental nomads running up to my. I took a long sigh, _oh god here we go... _I thought to myself. "Wait there young fella don't 'ya want to know how to save the world!", he said wearing the most bizarre plain white and brown robes, I've ever seen. _Do you want to know how keep you noes?,_ I smirked at this thought, "Um no, no thanks I'm going to be late for school", I lied, I didn't feel like walking through the park because I wanted to avoid... this guy.

"Here takes these seeds, they'll help save the world! Don't forget to stay in school!, he left running off to the next person he saw, I stood there with the seeds in my hand and a "what the hell just happened" look on my face. When he was out of sight, I tossed the seeds over my shoulder and walked on. _Crazy man, he's not even aware of what's going on the the world, but It must be nice running throughout the world seeing every day as an adventure. _I laughed to myself,_ old fool._ I walked on until I reached the corner revealing the front of the school.

Crossing the street and entering the front gates, revealed the large front courtyard, students were showing off their bending, throwing Frisbees, and just hanging around talking. Some were sitting on the steps that led up to the front of the school. "I swear if someone offers me more god damn seeds again I'm going to kill them!", said a student walking by me. I laughed at my similar incident. Students showed off their bending, fire, water, wind, and lighting to those who were more advanced. One of them being Lee.

Lee was an advanced fire bender, he was tough, skilled and a total ass to Ruan and I. Luckily he was already entering the school so he didn't see me but that doesn't mean we would get under each others skin, I hated him. I walked closer to the steps, a Frisbee nearly took off my head, followed by a kid my age running after it. Class hadn't started yet so I might've well catch up on my rest, which was interrupted earlier then it needed to be by Bo. "Did you hear about the sand pits? They say the avatar blew up a building!", I overheard a group of people talking. Everyone seemed to agreed. _Great more Equalist bullshit, please I get enough of that from my teachers_, I thought to myself.

I tried to Ignore as much of the surroundings as possible. I continued onto the front steps of the college steps, then I stopped. Seeing her sitting in the middle of the steps and talking to her friends made me nervous, Kya. Kya was amazing, beautiful, and a very skilled water bender. I never knew what to say to her, she was a bender so I was kind of uneasy, Thank you Bao. I think I said "hi" to her..once but that had to be a long time ago and during a assemble in the great hall. She wore a long blue dress. She seemed to always wear blue or red, but I really didn't care, I liked her a lot.

Kya had long black hair, tan skin, and was blue eyes. Out of all my classes she was in one, and that was my last class. Although she wasn't in many there was something about seeing her in the end that made my day. I began walking up the steps, getting closer to her, I really didn't want to seem eager or nervous but the least I could do was say "hi", what did I have to loose? All of a sudden I was thrown off balance when an arm hooked around my neck, trying to reclaim my balance I caught whoever had been there.

Some people had looked to see what had happened but had lost interest almost immediately. "Khai, man welcome back to hell or school... not sure what the difference is", said Ruan digging his knuckles into my head. We laughed a bit at the incident then I fully regained my balance, and we continued to walk up the stairs. "You scared the shit out of me man, where did you come from?", I replied.

He pointed at a random direction, where my head turned. I saw nothing turning back the knuckle of his middle finder tapped hard against my forehead. Ruan laughed, "Just like my father ya know?", Ruan said cheerfully laughing. "Your an ass", I said back rubbing my head. "And your gullible, how do you expect to outshine your brother if you can be caught off guard so easily. C'mon Khai, I'm like your mentor in a way.

We reached the top of the stairs and went inside the main entrance, we had the main hall where people stood and talked before the it was time for class and then stair cases leading to the second floor. I shoved Ruan, showing my "respect" to my "mentor". Blue Drapes hung on the wall with golden letters of C and K on the front.

"By the way I saw you starring at her again. Kya right? When are you going to make a move Khai, I'm not going to baby you forever, man.", Ruan said walking down the hallways of the first floor. I would have responded but my attention was drawn elsewhere. This guy was unexplainable, he was so quiet, I'm sure he never spoke more then a hundred words a day.

Jun was a thick, blond haired boy. He was younger then me but in three of my classes. He wasn't that tall or strong, in fact he was skinny but he wasn't at all social.

"Hey Khai, you in there? Hey!", Ruan yelled in my ear, which drew some attention. My hand quickly slammed against my head holding my ear, "A little louder please I don't think I heard you!", I said more irritated this time.

"Sorry man, but it's like you just left this planet, soon enough you had a blank stare on your face, and you didn't even answer my question", Ruan replied. I replied quicker this time but my mind was still on Jun, even though he never made a sound he was still a mystery to me and other students as well, I've overheard conversations about him.

"Yea, sorry I was thinking of that kid over there, Jun", I said thinking about how I actually said those words. Ruan gave me a really weird look. "Wow dude, first Kya now Jun, your more determined than I thought", Ruan said sarcastically. I went to shove Ruan but he had expected it this time. "You ass, that's not what I meant, I mean have you actually heard him talk to others?," I said to Ruan.

Ruan stopped and thought about it for a minute. "Now that you mention it I haven't. The guys more silent then a ghost and the only thing close enough to talking to him is hearing rumors about him from other people, it's terrible when you think about it", Ruan replied. We stopped at our lockers getting everything we needed for first period. Our lockers were somewhat close, we just we a few down from each other, lucky enough nobody was in between us at the time. A loud whistle blew, announcing to get to first period.

"But I'll bet you two will be perfect for each other", Ruan thew in at the end, laughing. I slammed my locker shut and walked over to him grabbing his shirt, I wanted to hit him, in a weird brotherly fighting sort of way, "That's not what I meant you little-!", I would have finished but I noticed that Kya was walking by. She caught a glimpse of me and I obviously couldn't help but stare back. I quickly released Ruan, who was still laughing, I turned smiled at her and waved. She smiled back but she suddenly got side tracked when one of her friends started to talk to her.

"Really cool there Khai, well I got to get off to World History so I see you in third and fourth period man", said Ruan walking down the hall. I ran my finger through my hair, embarrassed that once again I couldn't get a word out to Kya. I closed my locker and started to walk to my class but was interrupted by Lee slamming me into the lockers, three other fire benders were behind him.

"Well hey there Khai, where do you think your going?, Lee said, everybody surrounded me. "Look Lee let's not do this here man, c'mon lets be smart and-", I was cut off my the sound of Lee's hand slamming against the lockers. I looked over to see a burnt mark and a little smoke rising from it. "No no no, see you don't talk, you Equalist shit, you listen to me. Well I must admit, it's just like an Equalist to try and squeeze his way out of an situation, since your kind buys your way towards just about every immoral action, money, power, and murder", Lee said angrily.

I shook my head, "You don't buy your way to those things lee you earn-", Lee responded before I could finish by slamming his fist into my stomach, I bent over in pain just to get my head slammed back into the lockers by one of Lee's "friends", still holding my head back by my hair.

"Shut up! Your in no position to be correcting me you Fuck!", Lee said as he hit me in the side of the head sending me to the ground. Their circle that had surrounded me was now broken as I laid on the ground trying to get to my feet. Lee knelt down, "Maybe you can't get this through that damn Equalist mind of yours but hopefully you can see that if you or your family ever threaten me, my family, and friends-", This time it was my turn to interrupt him, probably not the smartest thing but his anger was his downfall as well, although he never used it correctly.

"Go to hell", I whispered to him, Lee was now furious. He tried to hit me but, predicting this I caught it. This had angered Lee even more, pressing down with his fist he lifted up his free hand and emitting flames. However one of his friends caught this and jumped in.

"Whoa Lee, not here man they'll catch you. Let's not going through another lock down.", One of his friends said. Lee stopped his fire and rose to his feet, he spat on my shirt. He cursed my name as he and his friends walked off to first period. Bending of any kind was not tolerated and if caught, the school would go into lock down for two hours even if the situation was settled, they said it was protocol. More like punishment to me. I got up brushing myself off of whatever dust had gotten on me. I had been late to first period.

(First period ended, second had started)

Unlike literature, there was something about world history that I liked. Maybe it was the interesting battle or the world sort of finding peace at the very end. However this Peace never seemed to last very long. We had learned about Avatar Kyoshi vs Chin the Conquer and how she stopped him from upsetting the balance of the world.

Once again Jun had been in that class, he sat in the very back of the class. He almost seemed sinister, he never spoke unless spoken directly towards and even then it didn't seem like much. Although he did show emotion at times but even then he was still a mystery. After a couple hours had past, a the lunch bell had rung. Lunch was pretty cool, there were tons of things to eat here if you didn't bring your own food, not to mention you could eat anywhere. I chose to eat outside with Ruan, seems like the only time to actually get freedom from this place.

I walked outside, down the main stairs and entered the main courtyard. Hundreds of people ate outside almost every day, I ate with Ruan at a table shaded by a tree near the edge of the campus. I brought my own lunch of a sandwich and an apple. They sold drinks there which always gave Ruan a reason to bring money. "How goes it?", Ruan said reading a book.

"Well I got jumped by Lee and was late to first period, so my day was pretty awesome. Since when do you read.", I said changing the subject. I could tell he was really into it. "I'm not actually sure how this happened either, kinda weird actually", Ruan said taking a bite from hit chicken. We talked and laughed about life, and crap we took from class.

"So how did it go with Kya today?", Ruan said putting his book down and focusing on his drink. I sighed and shrugged my shoulders. "That bad huh? Well look at the bright side, you still have next period and your in her class at least you can say hi", Ruan said. It would be really nice seeing her in fourth period and who knows maybe I'll talk to her. We talked more about Kya and Ruan kept on his book, "Now that you mention it why am I reading this?", Ruan said closing the book. As he put down the book a full view of Porter sat in the top branch of the tree that shaded us.

"Son of a-!", Ruan said surprised, quickly standing up, "You stare at people for a living or is this you sense of humor?", Ruan said. I Turned around and looked up as Porter as he sat there eating an apple. I got to my feet as well, and wanted to get him back for kidnapping me and Ruan, but it was clear Ruan didn't remember a thing. He laid there and smiled. "If it helps, I had my name on it.", he laughed at himself. I looked down and saw the letters J.C carved heavily into the bottom of the tree.

Porter jumped down and stuck out his hand towards Ruan. "Johnathon Porter, nice to see you, uh again and conscious", He said. Ruan looked confused as hell, yea he definitely didn't remember him. I pushed his hand down and shoved porter against the tree. "Whoa now Khai, let's not get violent, I'm just here to talk", Porter said activating his hidden blade. I didn't know what to do, I didn't think I could trust him yet but what choice did I have, he was there wasn't he? Might as well hear what he had to say.

Porter hopped down from the tree, he and I sat at the table. He wore Blue pants, a texture I was unfamiliar with, black combat boots, and a grey short sleeve shirt. Ruan was still standing with a confused look on his face. "So you guys know each other?", Ruan said cautiously as he sat down. I sighed "unfortunately", I said drinking a cup of water. "Relax Khai, I'm only here to talk", he said peeling his apple with his hidden blade. His weaponry was pretty advanced, but maybe it was just all new to me. Everybody knows the army has all the cool toys before the people do, but still Porter looked to young for that stuff.

"Talk? Are you kidding me the last time we talked you-", I stopped I really didn't want Ruan to know what had happened, not because I was embarrassed or anything but there was just no need to right now. "I'm not sure how to respond to all this so..pretend like I'm not even here", Ruan said picking his book back up. His attention span was amazing.

"Relax Khai, I'm not here to kick your ass again, by the way call me John, we're not doing this army shit now, were at your school relax if you can", John laughed. I didn't know how to feel but maybe I could get some answers like where he was from. "Whatever John, just where are you from", I asked stressfully.

John noticed that I was annoyed with him. "Look Khai we've had our struggles (he said this with a sinister smile) but lets put that behind us now we're at your school, tell me about it. About our location, you wouldn't believe us anyway, we come from a place you wouldn't think existed", John said. That just got me more curious, those types of answers really just annoyed me more.

"John-", I was interrupted by the sound of sirens going off on the streets. Off school campus, armor vehicles arrived almost surrounding our school. It got very much attention of everyone outside during lunch. They all starred as more armored vehicles blockaded the main entrance on school grounds. Some had actually driven onto the grass. The back doors busted open revealing Equalist soldiers in their armor while higher ranked one came with black hooded robes and their masks.

One in general had pulled up very close to us but we had been near the back of the school. He was yelling out orders as Equalists surrounded the whole school. I look around there was no escape. One hooded Equalist in general had hopped out of his vehicle he wore an all black hooded robe with his armor underneath partly showing. His mask, I will never forget his mask. It had a large crack running up diagonally. I was terrified of what was about to happen next.

Porter had broken the silence. "oh no", he whispered to himself. Ruan had finally realized the situation we were in and put down the book. He took out a device that had almost looked like a radio except it was much smaller. "John what the hell are you doing, what is that?", I demanded.

"You wouldn't believe me Khai, I'm calling in my squad, we'll need them"


	9. Bo's Struggle

_Authors Note: This chapter is going to explain what has happened to Bo when Khai was on that parcel errand and had his little encounter with John and Shana (why he became so dark), sorta like those fillers nobody likes, haha. Tell me what you think, please read and review!  
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><p>"Like I said sir, no bodies had been recovered from the "sand storm" incident in district 10 earlier today", said an Equalist soldier.<p>

"Impossible, I've received Intel that there had been three HVT's (high value targets), sand benders, in that area, how the hell did we lose them. I thought we had spies all over?", replied Bo. Bo and the soldier had been walking through Equalist central office, the biggest Equalist outpost in his own district, in Kyoshi Way. They continued walking down a narrow hallway, passing rooms left and right. Some used for prison cells and operation rooms. Other used for torture.

Bo had been wearing the black robe and the metal red and black armor underneath. He carried his mask in an inside pocket of his black robe.

"We did sergeant, but we had another mission received directly from Amon's top captain, to intercept those spies with another deception mission to influence public opinion over to the Equalist party", the soldier stuttered a bit, he didn't like arguing with his superiors especially when they were in a bad mood. They passed another room on the left, this time moans could be heard from a prison cell, one one them was obviously being starved, but Bo didn't look back.

Bo mind struggled, he hated it when other soldiers interfered with his orders, by taking an others, but he had no choice but to follow them. _Damn, him! The bombing at the entrance of the sand pits must have been what the spies were doing instead but that was much earlier then the HVT mission, how come they didn't return to their original duties_?, Bo thought to himself.

The two Equalist soldiers opened a door to the main room of the central office, there were cubicles, desks, and tons of people. Some of which were talking on radio's from one another, discussing about anything they could do to convert people to their party. If they weren't doing that, they were probably working on ordering imports from other nation/colonies.

The main room was noisy as hell, everybody was under stress from Amon, the leader of the whole Equalist party, the president and beyond. Orders and HTV missions were being given out like food to a dog. "Come with me private, lets not talk at my desk this time", Bo said. They both entered an interrogation room on the opposite side of the main room, naturally it was a separate room so they could have privacy.

"Interesting choice.", said the private, sarcastically. The private sat down at the metal table. In fact that was the only thing there, Bo had pushed a button over near the wall where they came in so the only people so who could hear the had to be on the inside. Bo closed and locked the door.

"Sorry, the noise from the outside really irritates me, I can't file one piece of work, without getting a damn migraine", Bo said irritably, massaging his temple with his fingers.

"It's fine sir, but why am I here again?", said the private. Bo inhaled and exhaled slowly relieving some pain from his headache and stared at her for a moment. Bo finally gave in, "Look Ty ce last night on patrol, you were in the sand district correct?". Ty ce nodded slowly almost afraid of where this was going. "Alright so where were you after that?", Bo said propping his head up with his fist.

Ty ce caught on quickly and lashed out at Bo, "I knew it! This is just a damn interrogation!". Bo was about to reply calmly but she interrupted. "I knew it, God I just knew it! Why didn't I see this coming before, I should have known that after that giving you my finger prints this was just another fucking liability issue!", she said rising to her feet and pacing back and forth._ Wow, I honestly thought that the finger printing would have been a dead give away, however it is a precaution for all new recruits, like herself. _Bo thought.

"Look, Ty ce, this is not what you think it is", Bo began to say. Ty ce's fist slammed against the table. "NO you listen, I joined you Equalists to get away from the constant bullying your people are doing to my family and you have the nerve to blame me for a crime I didn't commit!" Ty ce said throwing up her arms in anger.

Bo let out a long grieving sigh and tried to explain but Ty ce wouldn't let him get a word in. "Private sit down now!", Bo roared. Ty ce's facial expression instantly dropped and she slowly sat down clenching her fists. "Nobody's blaming anybody here Ty ce we just ant to know wher-", a knock at the door silence Bo and he turned around revealing both the faces of his lieutenant, who used to be his sergeant while he was a private and another officer accompanied him.

"Please wait Ty, this won't be long", Bo said standing up. He walked out of the room locking the door behind him. "What going on", Bo said. The lieutenant looked mad as hell however it was the office who spoke first. "Sergeant Bo, we're going to need to speak to you privately for a couple minutes. "May I ask what for?", Bo said giving a confused gaze at them. "Well it looks like you basically did, so shut up and follow. Officer Ky fae your dismissed!", ordered the lieutenant. he was wearing short sleeved light steel plated armor, it had been covered with a basic civilian clothes (he obviously just started his shift) consisting of a grey trench coat, black pants, and combat boots.

The officer saluted and left leaving Bo's angry superior leaving the building followed by Bo. They left the building and went onto the sidewalk the scorching heat tailing them. We walked around the block and past the main entrance. There was shouting and chaos on the front step of the central office, "Down with Equalism!", they shouted, protesters..this should be interesting. The lieutenant didn't seem to care, he let out a pathetic laugh, "worthless protestors" he mumbled under his breath. We kept walking until we reached the center of the chaos.

Equalists had blocked the entrance of the building and streets, "Long live the White Lotus!", some shouted. One of them noticed them two walking towards them, and tried to attack the Lieutenant. I noticed his left hand clenched but not all the way, almost as if he was concentrating on something, which is unusual because he usually just went to defend instead of thinking. He caught him arm and bent it backwards bringing the protestors elbow up to his ear and forcing him to the ground. He then proceeded with slamming his heel into the protestors noes, breaking it.

A stream of blood ran down his chin as he laid there in pain. The lieutenant signaled two guards over, and rushed over quickly as the protestor was on the ground.

"Are you all right sir?", asked a guards. He was dressed in the regular Equalist assault uniform which was just metal red and black armor, the mask and robes were a promotional uniform.

"I'm fine private, just haul this piece of shit to the prison cells, he's under arrest for assault to a superior", he then proceeded to walk in the middle. "You are trespassing on Equalist property, this is your last chance to leave before you White lotus filth are under arrest", he announced to them. Some had back off but most of them laughed. They shouted back at them raising their fists in anger. "Fuck you Equalist!", someone had shouted from the crowd, to afraid to come out.

The Lieutenant showed almost an evil grin. He pulled out an hand held bomb from his inside. He threw it up and down in the air repeatedly catching it and smiled evilly, this caught the attention of the protestors and silenced them. Bo looked shocked , he knew the Equalist party wanted full "freedom" for everybody from the benders but this seemed out of line. Bo swallowed hard, seeing his superior do this made him wonder why he was given such a serious look before, and he was just toying with these people.

"Alright move aside, or you'll be arrested!", He said walking through the crowd. Bo wiped the sweat from his brow, his armor had been cooking him from the inside. Usually he hadn't been outside in his robes and armor unless he was called for a mission, but now he had just been a walking oven. Three protestors got in the way of the Lieutenant, they wore sand tribesman clothes, and had a fierce look in their eye. "I said stand aside, Lotus trash!", ordered the Lieutenant.

"I don't think so you Equalist shit heads! Return the city over to the White Lotus then we'll let you walk where ever you want", said the protestor, spitting on the Lieutenant's boot. The crowd of people got closer influenced by the increased moral of then three brave protestors. Brave or stupid, Bo just wanted to get out of this heat. "Back away all of you!", shouted Bo. They just got closer, signalling more Equalist soldiers would have been useless, our sight from them was blocked so it didn't matter. Using the bomb intimidation trick wouldn't work either, since we're in the middle of the blast radius, it would be suicide.

Insults and swears were thrown from all over the crowd getting louder and the addition of the Lieutenant's voice wouldn't help, only makes things more chaotic. Bo could tell he was getting impatient, he had dealt with this sort of thing before, but now this was just pestering him. "I'll say this one more time back up or suffer major consequences!", roared the Lieutenant, this time was more serious then the other. He drew a scimitar sword, that had been hanging from the inside of his trench coat.

He aimed his curved blade so it was diagonally across all three protestors that stood in his way, the others instantly backed up, "Now move, or die it's up to you lotus scum!", the Lieutenant roared. Bo got an evil grin on his face. The protestors went silent after the Lieutenant drew his blade, other whispered amongst each other as other just gawked at the sight of the curved sword.

"Sand tribesman, weaponry an affective solution to all your problems", Bo said trying to get on the Lieutenants good side. However he wasn't amused, what had amused him was the scared expressions on the faces of his enemies. All protestors back away letting the two Equalists past. "Shut up sergeant Bo I'm still not done with you", replied the Lieutenant.

Bo was silent the rest of the way, ashamed even though he had no idea what he had done. They left the group of protestors which had began to shout against the Equalist party once they we're a far enough distance away, and at the same time Lieutenant had sheathed his sword. They rounded another corner into an alleyway revealing the disgusting trash and waste of the poor.

The homeless wandered these ally's searching through dumpsters and trash cans looking for any scrap they could feed themselves to survive the night. It was also a good protection against the harsh sun. The two hadn't gone far into it, they walked until they founded a large spacious area, still within the alleyway, however along the brick walls was a garage door.

"Forgive me sir, but what exactly are we doing here?", Bo said. The Lieutenant didn't speak right away instead his was looking back and forth, as if he was searching for something.

"Over here dad", a voice rang out. The two looked up and saw a kid, no younger then Khai. He sat motionless on a nearby fire escape. His thick blonde hair got in the way of his eyes a little and he starred emotionless at Bo. "Is that him?", he said still eying Bo.

"Yes Jun, please come down and.. examine him.", The Lieutenant said. So they were father and son, but this still confused Bo, what the hell did they mean by "examine him?".

Bo backed up slowly as Jun hopped down, wearing a grey shirt, long blue pants, and sandals. They cornered him against the wall. "Bo, your what I need to test out my sons "gift". I've watched you throughout your time getting up the ranks but I feel your to soft", The Lieutenant said. Bo had the most confused look on his face now, what the hell were they talking about?

"Sir I'm not sure what you me-", Bo stared to say, however out of the corner of his eyes he could see a swift movement coming straight at him. He didn't move in time to avoid Jun fist slamming against his neck. Bo's head shot up and yelled in pain, as Jun removed the hand an empty syringe could be seen in his hand.

"Wha-what.. the hell, did you j-just inject me with", Bo sputtered out, sliding against the wall onto the ground. His hand caught up against his neck and a slight trickle of blood seeped through his fingers.

"Bo, your weak, your spineless, and your not strong, not yet anyway. My son Jun here has been perfecting his medical solution for years and we needed the final test subject, these ally rats just keep dying", the Lieutenant said now giving a slight smirk. Bo turned to Jun to see he was not smiling but glaring at him. It was clear this kid didn't get around much.

Bo still sat on the ground, he could feel the medicine coursing through his veins all over his body until he started to go numb. "Don't worry Sgt. Bo, I've perfected this solution so death won't be an option for you. However extreme power will be a side effect", Jun said. The Lieutenant gave a weird look to Jun. "Relax, It's a new form of adrenaline I've invented, last longer and more controllable. Maybe now Bo if you can control that fail of a brother, Khai, toughen him up a little. I see how he is in class, never to get to his feet, he's weak just like you", Jun said.

"You said it's controllable, Jun?", said the Lieutenant, still giving Jun a weird look. "Yes, once injected the formula has the ability to cover the brain effecting everything without actually damaging it. He's basically your servant.. at least until it wears off. I'll try to get rid of the passing out part in the beginning, that could be dangerous for business if your soldiers actually want to get stronger during battle", Jun said, chuckling at the situation.

The Lieutenant pulled out a dagger from the other side of his trench coat pocket and tossed it in front of Bo, "You might want this to intimidate Khai, your fathers told me what weakling he is". Bo started to get faint his vision blurred and he started to loose his hearing, temporarily of course.

"Here you might want this", Jun said. He knelt down and put the Equalist mask over Bo's face, revealing who Bo really is.. or who he is going to become.


	10. The Battle of Kyoshi Pt 1

I would be lying if I said I wasn't afraid. I was terrified. The fact that Equalists were surrounding my school, full body armor, and armor and cloaks vehicles killed me. I was frozen, I had never seen a deployment of Equalist soldiers as big as this one. They surrounded the school, side by side they stood there black robes acting as a wall of shadows. I couldn't see the bottom of the buildings that had been on the other side. Most had been blocked by the armored vehicles. John had still been talking to.. whatever was in his hand. Anyway I could telling he was serious he was practically yelling into it.

"Look Christian, how far away are you?", John said. I heard muttering from the other end of the small radio, it was quick but it seemed to get to the point with John. "Alright fine, I don't give a fuck how you get here, just do it. Oh and report to the others to take out any Equalists who attack civilians", said John who seemed to be folding his radio in his hand. The three of us stood near the table next to the tree.

"Porter...or John sorry, what the hell is going on, and who is Christian?", I asked. I hadn't been looking at him, I had been more focused on my surroundings. "What type of name is Christian anyway, are you colonists?", asked Ruan acting the way I was.

There had been no way out Equalists had slowly started to approach the school, some armored vans had even pulled up onto the grass. "Look Khai, I really love to give you a history lesson, but we've got bigger problems as you may have noticed", replied John in a sarcastic tone. I couldn't take it anymore, I lashed out towards John putting my hand around his throat, Ruan was shocked, _what the hell happened between these two?_ he thought. "Hey Khai, man just calm down", he said. John hadn't been expecting me this time, however he did come prepared.

"Listen to me you bastard, tell me who are you and where are you from!", I shouted. I glared at him, my eyes piercing into his, but he didn't give me the satisfaction I wanted, although he was a little frustrated. He choked and sputtered a bit, trying to talk but my grip only got tighter. He had returned the favor my removing a weapon that had been tucked underneath his shirt, one I had never seen.

I lightened my grip, the black weapon he had in his hand was now at my head, a hole in the center barrel was aimed directly at my temple. "Y-you, like l-living right/", muttered John trying to get control of the situation. I don't know it seemed like he could have easily broken my grip, he probably doesn't want to make a scene with the Equalists around, play it safe. I didn't want to loose control, unknowing of his weapon I let go, giving him a little push as doing so.

He stepped back a bit, rubbing his throat, he looked around a bit at the Equalists who were still trying to organize themselves. Then he angrily fixed his attention back on me, I didn't blame him. "Fuck.. Khai listen I-", John had begun to say. He was cut off by an armored van that had been driving backwards. Dirt and dust had filled the air, the vehicle had smashed itself through the chain link fence, and the back doors were thrown open.

All our attention was on the Equalist who had now full entered school grounds. That goes for other students as well. Things started to get uglier, "Praise Equalism!", each soldier shouted. The three of us were shocked, our eyes widened in horror, this will signal the beginning of the historical battle which will be known forever, maybe even more then the great war, with Avatar Aang.

Some soldiers had charged hopped over the fences they hadn't broken down. Screaming could be heard all over the school, quakes of fear roaming the campus. Lee, the obnoxious fire bender who had beaten Khai, earlier had fought back, flames rose from his hands, launching out a stream of fire at them. Other students with different elements had done the same. Rocks had been thrown, pillars appearing from the ground striking the Equalists. Water used as whips and turned into frozen spikes shot from the step of the tower, and the fire benders attacked, engorging the energy from the sun.

Equalists using palms and knuckles to strike the benders blocking their chi paths. Some of the bender limbs had gone numb, making them collapse to the ground, incapacitated. What really got my attention was Lee's sudden victory over the Equalists that he had attacked. As Lee lashed his arm out, emitting flames, the Equalist immediately used the edge of his hand to swipe, away Lee's arms hitting his wrist sending it out and making him wide open for any kind of attack, Equalists choice.

However, the Equalists was dropped. Out of nowhere, in the middle of his attack which could have been the end for Lee, was stopped by an unknown force. Lee looked in extreme confusion as the soldier crumpled to the ground. "What the hell Khai, I'm the son of a detective, not a fucking general, we can't take them let's get out of here!", Ruan shouted. John looked at him in disgust, and was thinking of an insult as an other guy ran over to us shouting.

"John, I'm glad I found you, sorry it took me awhile this hippie in the park kept offering me seeds. So how was class?", said the man. He looked about 17, he had tan skin, black hair, and brown, near-black eyes.

"Fun story Christian, and yes, I have made some friends.. but that's not the point look we need get to the lockers", John said changing the subject. Ruan and Khai, looked at each other with sheer confusion. Two soldiers ran through the mowed down fence and towards all four of them. John could see Khai and Ruan getting eager to defend themselves, however John had another plan.

John's drew his other-worldly weapon, and aimed at the Equalists. Two loud bangs, erupted from the weapon. Ruan and Khai, had not been expecting it. Streams of blood flood out of the soldiers head, as they fell to the ground motionless. They slammed their hands over their ears, in pain. Other attention was soon drawn by the noise. The man named Christian urged them to follow. "Fuck, man my ears! Their still ringing", shouted Ruan as he ran with them towards the back of the school. Khai, completely agreed, it was the most noisiest hand held weapon he'd ever heard and it caused a piercing ringing in his ears.

"Stop bitching, been here 5 minutes and their already complaining. It's like they never seen a gun before", said Christian panting as he ran towards the back doors of the school. John rolled his eyes.

"Tell me about it..", replied John. They both laughed a bit as they tried to avoid fights and getting into crossfires between bender and Equalist. Soldiers charged them, wielding swords, scimitars to be exact. Others carried hand bombs and dagger, while some just used their chi blocking skills. However John and Christian just used their "guns" as they called them to shoot more of their oncoming attackers. More streams of blood shot out from their exit wound.

John kicked down the door, revealing the long hallways of lockers. He them continued to kicked open his locker, which had been down a ways. John removed larger weapons, that seemed to be a lot bigger then their usually hand guns. He also tossed Christian a thick vest, which could seem useful in blocking the strikes of Equalist. Large crashes and roars of flames could be heard from around the campus.

"Khai, Ruan this is where we part ways, we would bring you along, no offense but you both would only slow us down", said john slapping on his vest.

"What!, you can't at least just give me a weapon, you have plenty in their.. which is amazing consider the fact you weren't caught by the hall inspector", said Khai

_(Somewhere in the school lays the hall inspector, unconscious in a closet)_

"Uh..yea, anyway here take this sword, I managed to swipe from some metal bending police, they have plenty of them, I don't think they'll mind", said John suspiciously. He handed me the sword. It had the insignia of the metal bending police, and it was double bladed on both sides. It was good weight considering it wasn't a scimitar, and it was long..(pause for "that's what she said" joke).

After we were done admiring the swords Ruan looked up "So, I'm going under the protection of this guy or do i get some cool?", he said. When he looked up he could see John and Christian rounding the corner of the hallway. "Guess we're on our own, c'mon let's see what we could do", I said. (**To see what happens to Johnathon Porter and his past adventures see "Nothing is True, Everything is Permitted" ****by mastermind123...If you hadn't noticed yet our stories go coincide, however some details might be altered and some events might be added, John and Christian belong to him as well)**

We rounded the opposite corner that John and Christian went. We jogged up the stairs revealing half burned tapestries hanging from the wall with the school's initials on it. The artistic colors now mixed with the burnt black color of where flames had been... or bombs. Some had still been slightly on fire and smoking. On the second floor horrific things had been seen. First out the window we could see Equalists arresting anybody who tried to find a way around them.

Anybody we attacked them had slightly more fatal consequences. Slabs of stone could been seen down the hallway of the second floor. Some impaled into walls, others into lockers of the students. The two of them walked slowly around each pillar and climbing over the one that been used to block off hallways but destroyed by the Equalist hand bombs.

A horrific scene of bodies scattered throughout the other side of the half damaged wall that had block are sight of them, laid bloodied and bruised on the floor. Some had dried blood smeared across their face, while other still had some dripping from their mouths, I wanted to vomit. "Shit Khai...", Ruan muttered to himself. I turned around, I didn't notice that Ruan had wandered off into another classroom, for reason I didn't know.

I was almost convinced not to enter the classroom, but my curiosity got the best of me. I gagged at the site of a teacher, pinned to the wall, with two blade coming out of her chest and stomach. The worst part was, she was off of her feet, pinned in mid air. As each second went by the teacher slightly lowered to the round her body weight overcoming the swords, blood rushed down he dress. Her face emotionless and she starred emptily at nothing.

Ruan's gawked at the sight of her. He almost left immediately as I entered the room. He stood in the doorway next to me as we starred. Desks, were tipped, some smashed by rocks, ice shards impaled other desks and walls. Some actually had dried blood on them, hoping to be Equalist blood. "Let's go Ruan I can't see any more", I said.

In fact we heard screaming, a girl. We got out of the room and quickly made our way around the stone slabs, and giant shards of ice. Bodies had not made this moment any better for the both of them, but they were determined to save this girl...somewhat. We left the first hallway, and rounded into the second. Their were only five rooms in this one, the other hand eight.

The same scenery of burnt tapestries, boulders smashed into the floors and walls, and bodies were everywhere. What was I suppose to see, Equalist soldiers waiting patiently in classroom, eager to learn? Even the thought of that couldn't make things seem better. There had been one wall that had been completely torn down and the boulder that done it was smashed into the one parallel to it.

Ruan and I advanced down the hallway towards the room with the screaming. However when we approached the locked door, a wave of water crashed through the doors, turning into ice shards and piercing the wall behind the bender. I drew my sword, ready for attack. To my surprise, after the rush of water ended and frozen into thin ice slivers in the floor, Kya could be seen kneeling on the ground, panting, sweating, and in pain.

Her straight black hair had been messed up, her beautiful dress ripped, and she was badly cut. she looked at me, she was surprised, but it was a surprise of excitement hoping to see someone to help her. "Khai", she said panting as hard as she could. She propped both her arms down to hold her up, I was both terrified and nervous. The girl I was in love with was right there, in pain, yet I couldn't even say anything back.

I bit my tongue, I had to do something. Even if this was my only chance to talk to her, I had to do something..kind of a sick way to think of it. I shook my head, to get my head back to reality. I raced to her and knelt down, Ruan went to the other side and did the same. "K-kya, whats wrong, who did this to you?", I said. I starred at her wounds, cuts along her legs and arms. They were deep, I needed to act quickly. "Khai", she said still panting heavily. I looked into her eyes and she looked into mine, I nervous thought but I didn't look away.

"Ruan, there's the janitors office, down the hall see if you can find bandages, or anything needed to stop the bleeding I can help now but we need to act fas-", I stopped talking. Footsteps could be heard across the hallway, from the room where Kya flew from. I turned and starred in horror for Kya's safety.

This soldier was very muscular, wielding two swords in each hand. Blood had been dripping from each one. However, his uniform had been very unusual for an Equalist. He wore a sleeveless metal chest place, metal fingerless hand guards, and metal studded black pants. The studs were on the inside, however I could tell the difference. It made him look more of a threat.

His pants were slashed, I had guessed that Kya was responsible for that, and blood ran from his shoulders, probably courtesy from Kya as well. He was a bald, well fit, Juggernaut of a sort. He pointed one of his blades at Kya.

"Move out of the way, she dies by my blade Khai", he said towering over all of us.


	11. The Battle of Kyoshi Pt 2

I didn't know what had frightened me more, himself towering over both of us or the size of his blades that were inches from our heads. I had once used anger as an advantage for strength, however it had been blocked my sheer fear.

"Khai, I wont ask again, move", He said again showing no emotion. He slid one sword down another, the screeching of the blades would make anybody's ear bleed.

"How do you know my name!", I demanded. I stood up but what threat was I compared to him? Kya's unconscious body shifted uncomfortably, it turned my head worried for her safety. "It's alright man, I got her. She'll be safe", said Ruan picking her up. He carried her in his arms, and started to run down the hall. This got the soldier attention very well He started to move after them but I blocked him off with my blade.

My sword now horizontal with his stomach, I quickly moved in front of him. "Now wont ask again, how do you know me?", I said, angrily. The thought of him killing Kya, made me furious,_ a murderous bastard like himself, has no place in this world_. My thoughts had became violent, a scared feeling rushed through my body but was quickly flushed out by the hate.

He now down sized me, I could tell he was getting irritated, "Your father, I know your father, now stand aside!", he said louder this time. He tried pushing my sword away to advance to Kya and Ruan, but I kept getting in his way, my sword drawn and aiming at his throat. He looked at the tip, I could have sworn I saw him crack a pitiful smile but that could of been the insanity that's consuming my brain. "What are you doing?", he said uncomfortably.

I worried for Ruan and Kya's sake, I didn't know where they were or how far they've gotten. I didn't dare turn around to look, no I couldn't take that risk. My eyes had never left his, they were locked on and couldn't be taken off. "How the hell is any of this going to benefit the Equalist party!", I shouted ignoring his first question. "Do you realize how many lives you just took!", I added, my fist gripping the handle of the sword so much it hurt.

"We had no choice, no more questions get the hell out of my way!", He was irritated and furious now, all I could do was hope that Kya made it out safety.. and Ruan of course but we have a brotherly bond, so I'm sure he was all right, however I still worried for the two of them. He caught my blade in the middle of his two crossed scimitars, and he raised his arms, automatically bringing my arm up and leaving my stomach exposed, where he took advantage of that.

The next thing I new was that my arms was raised to the ceiling and his boot connected with me rib cage. The amount of pain was excruciating, I had just been hit by a car, I was sure of it. I collapsed to the ground, my ribs in agonizing pain, I tried to recovery my breath as fast I could but he came after me. While lying on my back I scrambled to try to grab my sword, which I dropped when falling, with my right hand while clutching my wounded side with my left.

I grunted, the pain was still there and at it's peak. As I turned over,raising my wounded side to get my sword, I let out a quick yelp of sheering pain. The Equalist had already raised both his swords up, the light gleaming of one of the scimitars, but the dried blood had already shielded any light of reflecting from the other one. I grabbed the sword, gripping it as tight as I first held it. I slightly turned my head to see that the monstrous Equalist had already started to bring his swords down.

* * *

><p><strong>Bo (during the attack)<strong>

"Equalist piece of shit!", shouted Ty ce slamming a student fire bender against the lockers. He had seemed to be already weakened from her chi blocking strikes. "Benders, they're all the same, corrupt with power, thinking they can do whatever they want!", she said again tightening her grip around the benders neck. However she said this without realizing that she was this exact definition. "Why wou-", the bender was caught off. Ty ce's sword had already torn through his abdomen and out the back and into the lockers. She retracted causing blood to spurt out of the entering and exit wounds.

"Why should such evil get any last words anyway?", she said laughing as they body fell from it's position sliding down from the lockers, leaving a thick line of blood. It rested in a sitting position. She walked away from the body out in the hall, wiping down her sabre with a blank grey rag. She was on the first floor, walked down the hall slowly and looked in each room on both sides.

She was looking for someone in particular, but didn't know where he went off to. She had been told rumors that he had changed, that a great deal of energy or a rush had come over him recently and she wanted this feeling. Two thirds of the way down the hallway, one of the doors had been off it's hinges. She walked over to it and looked in, she saw Bo starring blankly out the only window in that room. He sat on a desk with his swords, which was thicker then a sabre, laying on his lap.

"You can't be serious Bo... do you actually feel sorry for these tyrants? Do you know what happened 70 years ago?", she said leaning against the arch of the doorway. Bo didn't reply, although he stood up revealing on the other side of him was a book. "C'mon, you should know, the great war, Avatar Aang, the whole damn thing started by fire benders", she put a lot of emphasis on her last word.

"Yes, Ty ce I know. I'm just looking outside", said Bo still showing no emotion. His cracked Equalist mask laid beside him and wore his usual Equalist clothing."Well there's not much to see, except for the doomed benders", she replied almost pouting. She didn't really understand Bo that much or why they were even partners on this mission.

"I wouldn't count on just our men to be here. The metal bending police force is here and soon so will Chief Bei Fong", said Bo now looking a little bit more anxious, and Ty ce got a little more sense of dread. "What! but how? Let me see!", she exclaimed Her blonde hair brushed against Bo's face as she walked over, peering out the window.

Bo gave her a weird look "Ty ce, Equalists are killing benders all over school grounds. There's fire everywhere, rocks are smashed not only into this school but into other civilian surroundings, and not to mention the pillars of ice impaled into the ground. Why the hell wouldn't anybody call this in?", Bo said sarcastically.

Ty ce examined him, he had never acted like this before, he seems almost disappointed. "Well you seem depressed", she replied in a concerned tone. Bo's darkened eyes locked onto Ty ce's. He picked up his sabre and broken mask and put them on. "C'mon we have work to do", Bo said walking out the door. He couldn't help but look down into his inner pocket, now being able to see a tiny mental case, and inside was the the full syringe, given to him by Jun. Ty ce slowly followed behind him.

Jun's medical experiment was complete, and how he got it that way was completely inhumane. Bo kept this knowledge to himself, but it was to horrible to tell anybody who asked, which is why he usually never brought it up. All he knows is that this injection will give him incredible strength but only for limited time, with little side effects.

Bo had stopped, he heard loud noise coming from the floor above him, he had an idea of what was going on. "Ty ce follow me, I'm going to introduce you to my brother".

* * *

><p><strong>Khai, Ruan, Kya, and some interesting friends.<strong>

I had angled my blade perfectly enough to block both of his swords. I was impressed that this sword held up against two swords as deadly as scimitars but then again this was John's swords, so for all I know it could be made from a material I never heard of but it looked metal to me. He pushed harder, his blades getting closer to my throat, I tried to hold him back but his might overcame mine.

He got closer, but his head was in a bad position. By lifting up on my right leg, I was able to project my other leg up, nailing him in the chin and pushing him over. A loud grunt came from him. I panted, scrambling to get to my feet and trying to catch my breathe. My sword hanging by my side, and my ribs still hurting from his earlier kick. It didn't take long for him to get up though, we hadn't been far apart. He'd been maybe three feet away from me.

He stammered up, however he had no marks on his face, big surprise there. The only thing that changed was his mood, he was furious and I had wasted most of his time. Ruan and Kya had to be a safe distance away now, I told him where to go but that was before I new we weren't the only ones here. Hopefully he improvised.

I had regained most of my energy but the Equalist went all out. He charged me swinging his swords, a very sloppy formation. We exchanged blow back and forth moving up and down the hall, our sword clashing each time. When ever he had the chance he would try to hit me but he would mostly fail. Making him even more mad, and sooner I found out the madder he got the worse at fighting he gets.

"Well I must say I'm not doing bad for a "kid" huh?", I said sarcastically, he got even more mad. He cursed at me and then attack. He used the same style of attacking, basically attacking with one hand and countering with the other. He swings were powerful, they left marks on lockers but none touched me. He swung bringing his left arm down fast, I defended a little differently. I dodged the swing and the sword got stuck in the locker, not thinking about kicking me instead he brought his other sword up. I had the advantage and I took control. I slammed my knee into his stomach stopping his sword from coming down.

While he gasped for air I then continued to slam my fist square into his face, it was perfect timing. He backed up his hands clasp to his noes which was now dripping with blood. He was completely defenseless, I brought down my sword which had cut his wrist clean through but it still stayed attached. It only cut through half way.

"Fuck! you...!", The Equalist wailed. I was giving into my anger and hate, and I didn't stop. I slashed his armor, it made a mark but didn't go through, I couldn't get sloppy now, I was just getting good. He stammered back, I followed up with a roundhouse kick hitting him into the side. My blood boiled. I jumped and shot out my front leg into his chest, knocking him back more. Rage coursed through my veins. After he stopped moving he caught my next attack, but I wasn't ready to give up yet.

His first mistake was catching my attack with his wounded wrist, big mistake on his part. I immediately launched my fist out slamming into his stomach, I recoiled bring it back into my side and launched out a powerful palm strike to his noes, to add insult to injury. My hate took me over.

I wasn't myself, nor could I forgive myself for what I was about to do. In the moment he fell to his knees, he was done with and I should've stopped but I didn't. Using my right leg I propelled myself of the locker and spun around bringing my hand with the sword around for my final infamous blow. "Khai!", a single voice shot through the halls.

Time seemed to slowed down, that voice was familiar, it was both an irritating one but I had learned to somewhat respect. It was Porter.

I couldn't stop, I was already in motion and I had no choice._ Forgive me._

My blade came down and slashed across the Equalists neck, blood flew out and splashed onto the lockers. When I landed I stumbled a bit but finally got to see what I've become. I starred in horror as the Equalist slumped over dead, my first blood. Not only Porter but it was Ruan helping out a barley conscious Kya with one her arms over his shoulder allowing her to walk. There was another girl, one who I was unfamiliar with, she could've been like John but she wore water tribe robes, but my mind focused on what just happened.

"I didn't want to do this, I'm not one to take a life", I murmured. A hand came over my shoulder for a brief moment, "It's alright man, you did it in self defense", Ruan assured me. I needed to get the Equalist out of my mind, for some reason my only escape was to accept what I've done, but I feel cold hearted for doing so. I turned around to face the everybody, but was greeted with an unexpected but pleasant surprise.

Kya had came up to me and wrapped her arms around me. It felt nice, comforting after what had happened. She buried her head into my shoulder and I could almost feel tears drop. "Thank you so much, Khai", she whispered into my ear. It was incredible, after what they just witnessed, they could still see me as their friends. My arms wrapped around her I almost didn't want to let go, but I did because it would have been creepy if I didn't, not to mention ruin the moment. We hugged it out and let go our eyes locking onto each others but was broken by John interrupting.

"Alright I'm sorry to break up such a loving moment but I have bad news, due to fact that what you just did here Khai, like I said it's not your fault, but we must relocate you, get yourself to safer locations. From now on you cannot go home, your refugee's now running from your own kind. However I have an idea on how we can solve this we just have to get out of here. Don't worry, I know what has happened for all three of you must be hard but your all my liabilities, thanks a lot", John ended sarcastically of course.

"Leave our homes are you kidding?", Ruan exclaimed. He wasn't sure if he heard correctly but are they really going to abandon their families completely? At first Khai was shocked to hear such news but he quickly thought of the bright side. "We have no choice, you can leave or stay here, become a traitor, and be executed. I know this must be a "hard" decision but I have faith you'll make the right one", John said. The other water tribe girl spoke this time, "The metal bending police and Chief Bei Fong should be helping with the mess so it looks like we're done here".

Ruan and I nodded in agreement and turned back towards John who turned his attention toward the other water tribe girl. "Alright Korra, once these three are protected, I'm still thinking on what to do with Kya, but once this settled we can go wherever you like", John said to the girl known as Korra. She smiled happily. I was puzzled, were they dating?

"Alright you three let's go, we're abandoning Kyoshi!", unaware they were all being watched by three specific Equalists.


	12. Abandoning Kyoshi

_Authors note: For people who like to read the connected stories between mastermind123 and mine, sorry about the confusion with the whole Equalist battle scenario __on chapter 11. We will try and get more organized on that battle plots the connect our stories. Remember that both of our stories won't be completely connected due to our characters going off doing their own thing, Khai belongs to me and Porter belongs to mastmind123, however there will be mentions of both of them in each others stories, hope you guys enjoy, please rate, comment, and subscribe!... Oh sorry that's youtube.. um, never mind just review please, thanks!_

* * *

><p><em>(Two months after chapter 11)<br>_

The hot water that ran down my back felt good, I was tense and this shower was my only vacation. Well, close to whatever I was going to get anyways. I put my head under the shower head and closed my eyes, holding onto the shower knob I let the hot water run itself through my greasy hair. My mind was somewhere else, thinking about the world and its chaotic nature but being myself and knowing John made me feel safe and secure. At times I actually had to come back to reality to keep myself from falling because I had almost fallen asleep, I needed this.

The water flooded my eyes, making me see that the world had lost a limb from humanities corrupt ways, but I was determined, no matter what I will always look for peace. I will end this war, I will bring the Equalists to their knee's. From the help of John and his... people wherever they were from, and the avatar, who we all waited for his or her return.

My mind repeated itself, over and over, my thoughts had imprinted itself into my brain. _I will end this war, I will find peace, and I will seize it! _Over the past two months, a lot has changed since the Equalist advancement on Kyoshi. Especially on myself.

I had began to control my violent thoughts. I had learned that anger would only invoke more anger, and with more anger would only call on hatred. I wanted to fight honorably not as some greedy, revengeful scumbag.

I rotated the shower knob that was just above the faucet, to cold. Every time my mind wandered into a more violent state, I would freeze it in it's path. I shivered as the cold water pelted my face and chest. Somehow after being drenched in hot water, the tiniest amount of cold water just made me feel like I was in a blizzard. I turned it back to hot.

I turned off the water and wrapped myself in a towel, running my fingers cleanly through my brown hair I proceeded to get dressed. I wore darkened long blue jeans, a very light black jacket with my college letters on it, and beneath that a blank red shirt. New clothes bought for "celebration" of my new path. Luckily for me the scorching heat had seemed to calm down, otherwise I'd probably wearing just shorts and a shirt.

I had to admit, I liked the way I looked, I hadn't bought new clothes in a long time but it hadn't been my favorite thing of mine. In fact it was a burden to go shopping. I exited the bathroom and sat at the foot on my bed, followed by a little bounce from the recoil of the springs underneath.

I'm still not exactly sure where I am, Ever since that Equalist attack two months back my old district, Kyoshi way has been completely taken over by Equalists. Politically of course, there are still metal bending cops around but they are still no match for the Equalist forces. They are determined to brainwash this whole city in what they say to be freedom.

I thought deeply in my mind ever since that day, the Equalist party would set off a bad vibe throughout the city. I'm not sure how they did it but I think I might know how. Over the past two months new technology has been invented, this would be considered crucial to the everyday lives of citizens. The television was first, the ability to observe what's going on in the city without leaving your home.

Mine only got two channels, one was the main news which talked about everything that goes on, mainly towards the Equalist's future, and how they use their propaganda to brainwash people to talk nicely about them. They second channel was merely political debates between the Equalists and the White Lotus party. I stayed away from that channel in fear that I would see my father.

My family, I hadn't seen them in two months. Ruan assures me that we're better off living our own lives. Ruan, had been the second thing why I loved living here, he was right next door. Days would pass where we wouldn't say "hi" to each other. We were always at one an others apartments, hanging out, or outside doing something fun. Why we hanged out in our apartments always made me think why we would. First off their exactly identical, we both had one main room with a bed, and across from us were T.V's on a decorated stand. We each had one bathroom, decorative plants near our kitchen area on each side of the windows; tall plants at that, not little potted flowers. Our kitchen was different in the main room, the carpet that had mostly covered more then half of our room ends the same way with tiles and a small eating area which was a poor excuse for a kitchen. It had a refrigerator, a table, and two wooden chairs that were mildly uncomfortable no matter how you sat in it.

Unlike Ruan's apartment I had moved my table so it was parallel to the window in my "kitchen", so I had a nice view. Ruan and I always joked around and saying stuff like "I'm going to bed, g'night" and one of us would respond "Uh, this is my apartment", because they looked the same. We would always laugh no matter how old the joke got.

Some of the other technology that has been invented was the Camera, Video camera, new clothes, new food, and just improved technology for the city. However most of them had been related to the T.V and new jobs had also been added to help report the news.

I stretched my arms, feeling them pop relaxed me, no matter how bad it was for your joints. I got up and turned on the T.V, to channel one to listen to the news. The T.V blinked, and a white light came on. It then turned to a female reporter whole already begun talking about today's news. "Otherwise in today's notice the Equalist have controlled 90 percent of district 23, however district 4 won an outstanding victory and gaining much confidence from the WLP".

I sighed heavily seeing the fall of my home town, but I had expected it. However the Yangchen district seemed to be doing fine. I ran my fingers through my hair, grieving at the hell that was brewing all of the city.

"A memorial service will be held today in the capitol, for those who died during the infamous incident, two months ago at the College of Kyoshi at district 23", she said changing her tone of voice. Behind her at the capitol of Republic City memorial fountain stood three giant pillars with the names of the dead inscribed on them. People had already started to gather around her, some crying heavily. I turned off the T.V followed by another white light on the monitor. servi

Her talking was silenced due to a loud banging at the door. I had to admit I was sort of startled, I wasn't expecting company Ruan was out restocking on food and John never came unless to train me in his ways of fighting. He had been training me for about some time now I many different forms of fighting I haven't even heard of. Kenpo, Krav manga, and sambo. I was taught these three and a little of other fighting styles and each one seemed harder then the other.

Ruan had been trained as well but he had been a more stubborn student. I've heard John say he would "Use him as a shield when the shit hits the fan", sarcastically of course but Ruan had made some progress but my training from my father had given me a little edge.. kinda.

I opened the door to have John, nearly passed out tumble through me. He looked terrible and was holding a bag of ice against his head. Not to mention he looked a little bruised. "So, I'm guess the "shit hit the fan" huh porter?", I laughed seeing him catch himself on my bed post. He slept the ice bag back onto his head and groaned.

"Wow, you look like hell, what happened last night? Didn't you go on another date with that Korra girl?", I said watching him bury his head into one of my pillow. He muffled something but I was unable to hear it. "What?", I replied to his jumbled nonsense. He got to his feet and shot out his finger. "Listen I-I told you before, c-call me John", he said unaware he was pointing at a wall and facing the wrong direction. "Uh, hey John.. over here", I said signalling him with my finger. His shirt was messed up, sleeves were rolled up and torn. They revealed some sort of tattoo's but they didn't look like any bending tattoo's I ever saw. Not to mention his smelled of alcohol.

"Are you drunk, and what happened to your face, you get in a fight?", I said watching him sit down on my bed. He glanced up at me and grinned, cracking a little laugh. "No, well not anymore. As for a the fight, yes a celebration for my birthday along with Korra's, and this fucking hangover is annoying but my heritage allows me to get over it easier, so..I wonder If I have some left over? ", John said going off topic, and massaging his temple.

"Well you look like shit man, wait there, I'll get you some water", I said walking over to the refrigerator. As I opened the door I heard another slam shut. "Huh sounds like Ruan's home, little bastard owes me rent", John said fully laying down on my bed. "Why did I give you the good bed, this one seems much comfortable, needed after what happened last night", he said laughing.

I walked back over to him and put my hand out offering him the water. "You looked relaxed", I said starring down at him. As he reached out, I jerked back on the water bottle, sending cool water over his face and shirt. A tiny stream of water was sent out of his mouth after all water had stopped dripping. He shook his hands sending water all over the bed and a little splashed on myself.

"The hell Khai I'm wet!", said John shaking out his hair. I rolled my eyes, "Your also hungover, go get sober by splashing water on your face", I said watching him crack his knuckles. "So this is how I'm paid, by throwing liquids at my face? You do remember who gave you this apartment right?", He yelled sarcastically from the bathroom. "Well as an Alien, you should be grateful you look like us and not being hunted", I responded sitting down on the foot of the bed.

I turned back on the T.V but turned down the volume. "Alien?", John yelled back from the bathroom. I could here the water from the faucet splashing on his face.

"Well if your not going to tell me where your from, you might as well be an alien. Your definitely not from here, not with that level of technology and those weird names of yours", I said starring at the memorial service still going on.

"Yes Khai, just because I'm different means I'm an alien. Just call me E.T", he said sarcastically. He fiddled with the faucet to get more cool water.

"What the hells E.T", I said sort of ignoring my own question. My mind had been focused on the television. "Never mind, it's an "alien" thing", John said sarcastically.

We laughed, still watching the news, people had started bringing flowers and setting them beneath the memorial tablets. The sound of the T.V was interrupted as I heard Ruan storm in. "Knock, knock can I come in? Great nice to see ya Khai, how goes it?", said Ruan leaping onto my bed. The springs bounced him high and gave me a little surprise push to.

I looked back to see Ruan relaxing in my bed, where John used to be. "Well your into your new television, I can't get mine to work, hey Khai got any chow?", Ruan proceeding to raid my fridge. He was unaware he changed subjects.

"Your kidding me, this is the fucking 5th time I fixed your T.V now whats wrong with it?", said John sounding annoyed. Ruan ignored John's question. I heard the sound of him shuffling through my fridge. "Ruan, what the hell why are you mooching through my fridge didn't you just go shopping, your going to have to ay me back!", I turned off my T.V, there was no way I was going to be able to hear anything they say with Ruan and John yelling back and forth.

"Come on Khai, you really think I'm going to waste all my food?", he said opening up a package of raw eggs. I didn't even no why I had that, I didn't have anything to cook them with.. unless I left them out in the sun on the pavement.

"Speaking of "paying me back", where the hell is my rent you little bastard?", John shouted, coming out of my bathroom. Ruan just responded by putting his middle finger in the air, the fridge door blocking his head.

"Yea, just wait until training you fu-", John was cut off by me. "So where is Korra, you said you were out on a date?", I said casually. John picked up his ice pack and emptied it back into the sink. "Oh she's in my bed right now..", John froze, just now realizing what he said. Ruan poked his head up and gave me a weird look, we both started laughing. Afterwards Ruan dared down to start his mooching again.

"And what why was she in your bed?", I asked removing tears of laughter from my eyes. John couldn't believe what he just said, it had just slipped out. His hangover was gone but that was his own mistake. He stuttered a bit trying to find out what to say. "Well, um, alright look it's not what you thing, uh.. goddammit, listen I-", He began to say.

"Cornbread", Ruan said interrupting John.

John and I looked at him. His randomness through us both off. "What?", I asked puzzled. John scratched the back of his head, "Saved by the idiot", he muttered to himself.

"Your out of cornbread, we each had some, I know you didn't eat your because you mostly been eating out, where is it?", Ruan said, almost actually sounding serious.

"Ruan, I ate mine, go mooch off someone else", I said. We all began to argue, it was Ruan and I and then it wasn't long until John joined in on the chaos. It wasn't very long before Korra entered the room silencing everyone by slamming her fist into the wall, creating cracks.

"Seriously, guys what the hell are you shouting about. I'm just trying to sleep. She was sleep deprived, the bags under her eyes showed greatly and the her hair was frizzled. "Well someones a bag of sun shine", Ruan said sarcastically. Korra immediately drew water from the air and froze it, shooting an icicle at Ruan Howver it missed and impaled my fridge door.

"Whoa, hold on! Lets not ruin my apartment completely", I said seeing as the frozen shard of ice nearly took off the fridge door of its hinges. John only laughed as Ruan hid behind the table.

"Listen John I need to talk to you, it's sort of important. Alone would be nice", she said glaring at Ruan who had looked at me. We both had the same thought. We couldn't help but let out a short laugh. Korra left the room followed by John who gave us the finger.

Ruan shut the fridge door, ignoring the fact that the shard was still in it. He walked towards the archway of the door and stretched embracing the sunlight. "Well I should off I'm getting tired, wake me in an hour and we can explore the town", Ruan said yawning. He left before I could answer. That was a good idea, I needed to explore a bit more then I have.

After all what did I have to lose? I had a brand new life!


	13. Alas Poor Yorick

I hadn't waited for Ruan, some part of me wanted to just walk alone. I had left apartment, passing by John and Ruan's apartments and immediately turned down stairs, which had creaked at every step. The wind blew into my jacket and ran across my face, I loved the wind but hated the heat. Ironically being born in the northern fire nation colonies. I had entered the courtyard once I got to the bottom of the steps. It was more like a storage unit garages and big crates piled on one another, and pallets leaned up against the sheet metal wall that surrounding the place.

You might have mistaken it for personal storage complex for those who have to much in an area to little. Others may just think it's an construction site, very "covert" place to hold refugee's like ourselves or at least that's what John says. Got to admit his connections are amazing if there able to sneak weapons and training gear of all sorts, into the garages.

I stopped at the entrance to the courtyard, there were so many garages I haven't been in. The ones I had been into held the most modern CQB, exercise, and sparring equipment I've ever seen. Considering John he probably had a knack for collecting these things so why complain, I mean he was teaching me to use this stuff. However there were some exceptions.

Since I'm an expert swordsman or at least moderately knowledgeable of the sport, I used his vast collection of blades. Most of the material and designs I've never even seen. I mean yea they were made from steel, but the carving, designs, and insignia's were amazing to just look at.

I put my hands in my pockets and continued down the street, I was exploring the new life I now lived. I think I can have a little time off from John training. Besides, I believe that Ruan still owes him "rent" which he pays by training. If John's going to house us here for free we might as well pay a little respect in return and it will be helpful so we don't end up getting him killed in a situation.

My surroundings were as expected, since I 'lived in a "junkyard" as Ruan calls it, Highrise buildings and restaurants flooded this part of Republic City. However we were living in the downtown area so the junkyard was kinda in the corner of the city, so other citizens didn't have to look and admire other peoples crap they couldn't carry. I didn't even know what district we were in, it kind of slipped my mine somehow.

I walked on down the same sidewalk I started. The warm scent of coffee filled the air, noticing a coffee shop across the street I knew where I was going. There hadn't been any cars as I crossed the street, in fact I hadn't seen much cars since we got here, it was a good low profile area. As I walked onto the porch of the coffee shop the smell of freshly grounded coffee immediately rose into the air. I loved it, wooden tables and chair stood empty and alone on the porch and on the inside were much more people. In fact it was the busiest I've ever seen this part of the city, however I still had to remind myself it was the downtown residential area so there wouldn't be as much people as the districts capitol.

People starred at me as I opened the door in curiosity, they gave me the look of a newcomer or maybe an outsider I don't know I couldn't tell the difference, if there was one. Some smiled as other just returned to reading or talking to one another without showing any emotion. I started talking to the store owner behind the counter, took me a couple of minutes before I realized she had only three teeth. An icy feeling went down my spine. She was short, had grey hair, and her brown apron covered everything else. However that was good enough for me.

"Decaf?", she said showing her rotted mouth.

"No thanks", I replied. I didn't usually drink coffee in the afternoon but I needed the energy. I grabbed the cup and sat outside on the porch, looking at my surroundings. This shop had been on a corner so the across the horizontal street were other apartments and small time shops. On my left or the vertical side of the street was my way back home.

I took a sip of my coffee, making a disgusted face as it touched my tongue. It tastes exactly as it should of, like shit. The first taste always did and I obviously hadn't had coffee in a while. I took a long second sip, and nearly coughed it back up. It burned my whole mouth and throat, and I quickly moved it away spilling some on my lap. "Shit", I said going for the napkins on the small wooden table.

The coffee burned my leg but I'm pretty sure I'll manage. I stood up and started wiping my pants with the napkin. Hoping to not look like I pissed myself, I stood up acting like nothing happened, however my coughing had caught some attention through the coffee shop window. I didn't know there was anybody behind me until the door to the shop had bumped the back of my foot.

"Oh, I'm sorry sir I heard you cough and thought I could bring you some more napkins", the female voice said. It's more annoying having someone help you with an embarrassing situation after you commit it yourself. I sighed heavily.

"Uh, no thanks I have enough", I said beginning to turn around. As I faced her, she had ran her fingers through her silky, long black hair. My eyes widened, and I froze instantly, I didn't no what to say at first nor was I prepared.

"Kya", was the only thing I said to her, our eyes locked, frozen by the great joy we now shared for one another.

* * *

><p><strong>Yorick<strong>

"You've been hiding from us from some time now, you honestly didn't expect to be found?", said a bender wearing brown cloak. The three cloaked benders starred down at the shop merchant.

"Look you've got the wrong man, I swear!", the man shouted pleading for his life. The two benders behind the main one looked at each other and smirked.

"You ran from us, turned into an alleyway, and jumped into a dumpster before we had a chance to even call out your name", the man in back said laughing.

"Quiet Kessen", said the bender in front looking down at the man. "You know for a fat ass you sure can run, especially for what just happened.", said the bender in front. The bender in back known as Kessen was trying to hold back his laughter. The man who now lay against the dumpster was big, almost crying, and sweating like he was in a sauna.

"It's always sad to see a grown man cry", said the other bender in back, next to Kessen. "C'mon Kenten, lets hurry up and return to the rest of the clan. I heard they have revolutionizing way to bring power back unto the benders!", said Kessen. Kessen out of the three had been the most talkative and got on everybody's nerves.

"Please, I'm sorry! have mercy please!", the man pleaded. He basically bowed to them for forgiveness. However Kenten wouldn't let up. He walked up towards them and grunted putting weight on his left right ankle. "Kenten watch your leg, it hasn't fully healed", said the other bender.

"Really Sento you don't say? The fact that I still yell in pain at night, doesn't give you a fucking clue?", Kenten yelled back at Sento. Kenten truly liked Sento, when he was in a good mood. Unlike Kessen, Sento was quiet, respectful, and smart. He also never talked back. Kenten being the leader of the small group was an irritable, arrogant, and powerful sand bender. They all wore matching brown cloaks symbolizing the bending supremacist group known as "The Pride".

"Relax Kenten, just hurry and kill the guy. Besides you didn't forget that we were also in that little accident right?", said Kessen. Kenten sighed heavily and ignored the man on the ground who was squabbling and mumbling words to himself. Kenten was getting angry at Kessen. "Yes Kessen very good, my impaled ankle doesn't even compare to you getting sand up your ass! No, not even on a fucking scale! So if your done being an idiot, shut up and let me finish this!", shouted Kenten.

Kessen and Sento, remained silent. Kenten turned back to the man who had seemed to be calmed down a bit. "Now if we can get back on track, your a traitor to The Pride and we cant just leave our people out with information on us.", Kenten said pulling a dagger from inside his cloak.

"Wh-what are you talking about, I've been a citizen for months now and never said anything bad about The Pride, why would I start now!", he had a point but he continued foolishly, "Not to mention your all over the fucking news, there is no secrecy to The Pride. You guys are an open book!", those words would be his judge, jury, and executioner. Actually his executioner would be Kenten.

"You mock The Pride, you fat meat seller?", Sento lashed out. He was a true patriot to his clan. Kenten ignored his outburst and knelt down to the man, inflicting more pain to his injured ankle. The knife was centimeters away from his throat. "Such a sorry excuse for an earth bender", Kenten said, his eyes piercing into the mans who had began to sweat like mad. Kenten smiled evilly and with a quick movement of his arm he slashed the man's throat.

Blood splattered across onto the dumpster and dripped down onto the ground. His mouth gargled as blood started to seep over his bottom lip. Kenten stood back up cleaning his dagger on the man's sweaty clothes. His ankle ached as he stood but he ignored the pain. "Kessen, dump the body and lets go", Kenten ordered.

"What! Why me? You do realize there's three of us and the third doesn't speak a word!", Kessen complained. Kenten covered his forehead with his hand and clenched his fist. _Why do clan rules prohibit bending on other clansmen?_, he thought. "Well if somebody hadn't knocked over the refrigerator on my ankle just to get a damn gold piece that fell behind it, I would've been healed months ago so shut up!", Kenten yelled back to Kessen.

Sento looked at Kessen in stupidity and followed Kenten. "Exalted Pride!", shouted Kessen as he ran to catch up to the others.

* * *

><p>My mind was blown, what was she doing here? "Khai! wow, hey how are you! It feels like forever!", she said basically leaping into my amrs. I was speechless, in all of Republic City I would never have expected John to relocate her here. The cheeky bastard, I know what he was doing.. and it was working.<p>

"Kya, I don't know what to say", I really didn't..

"Well some people start with "hello" or "hi" but in our case I guess it could be a little more creative", she said laughing. Her smile was beautiful her white teeth shown and I loved looking into blue eyes. I laughed back, we hadn't known each other that much but the Kyoshi incident had been enough to bring us close.

"You look amazing! How did you get here", a weird beginning but she didn't mind it. "Thank you, and it seems like this whole relocation thing wasn't so bad on yourself. Thanks to John, he drove me off campus and told me about your heroic doings", she said. She hadn't let up smiling once. _Don't Worry John rent is coming!_ I thought to myself.

"I'm just so glad your safe so where do-", the store owner called out to Kya, cutting me off. She signaled for her to return inside. "Well looks like the pearly whites over there is calling you", I said sarcastically. She laughed and I couldn't help but laugh back. "Listen do you want to do something after your done?", I said scratching the back on my head. I do that a lot when I'm nervous.

Kya lowered her sweet smile to a mutual one, "Yea sure of course! There is so much I want to tell you. My shift ends in a couple hours so do you want to meet here?", Kya asked. I couldn't believe this was happening, but I had to keep my cool.

"That sounds great! I'll pick you up then", I said happily. She smiled at me one last time and went back at inside, being called back in multiple times from the tooth fairy up front.

I was so exited, the one place I got relocated to an Kya's here and I still don't really know where I am. I should probably ask John that. I had forgotten about finishing my coffee, I was to busy thinking about the date I just made, I needed to get ready, there was still so many questions I needed to ask her.

_(Two hours later)_

The weather hadn't changed. Rolls of cool air frequently blew in. I hadn't changed my clothes as much, fixing up my hair and putting on new jeans to make myself look classy. I stood outside the coffee shop wondering about what to do. I mean I only rounded two corners to find the girl I loved, if that's all it takes to find something this amazing I'm can't wait to see what else is in store.

"Khai, hey whats up!", Kya's voiced echoed as she opened the door. I turned around and smiled. She wore a green shirt, and blue shorts and her long black hair hung down without restraint. I felt like I had overdressed.

She came over and gave me a hug, her hair brushed against my shoulder. "Nice to see you to Kya, man do we have a lot of acting up to do", I said sneaking out a slight laugh.

"Tell me about it, I know it hasn't been a year but all the chaos today makes it feel like this whole Equalist deal has gone on for centuries", she said. We started walking down the sidewalk. I wasn't sure where we would go but might as well let the day take us onward. She looked at me worried as if she said something wrong.

"Oh I'm sorry, I forgot that your family..", she stopped talking like she said something offensive however I had taken it the exact opposite. My eyes shot up to hers. "No, no it's not your fault at all, I've resented all of that", I paused for a moment. "Besides, if I would have gone back I would have been killed for betraying my family. I'm happy here.", I lied. Some part of me wants to see my family again, my mom and brother even though we had our differences, Bo seemed more harmonious.

I wanted to bring this date to a better state, talking about all of this was depressing and I wanted to brighten things up. "I know we haven't really spoken much, like at all during school but I have to admit it's great seeing you here and all better. Those cuts seemed pretty deep", I said.

Those words seemed to raise her spirits. She looked at me and thanked me, and we continued on.

_(Yangchen Park)_

It took me awhile but I finally found out that we were in district four. I heard about this on the news that it was completely control by the White Lotus Party or WLP. It was also known as the Yangchen area, named after a former avatar. An air bender to be exact, history had been my favorite subjects back in school.

We both had been talking for awhile this date couldn't have gone any better. We approached the statue of avatar Yangchen, who had stood in the middle of the park holding the globe of our planet. I didn't want to rush on any questions I had about her being here, relaxing and having fun seemed more important then an interview. However I had to ask sooner or later.

"So do you live by yourself?", she asked. I laughed to myself about my sarcastic vision that went on in my head about Ruan and his mooching for food. "More or less yea, Ruan and I have our own apartments but he seems to forget that he has his own food to eat so he eats mine instead", I said laughing. She gave me a curious look after I mentioned Ruan.

"Oh so Ruan's here to?", she said. We walked over to the only bench that seemed not be covered with bird crap and sat down. "Yep, and he's doesn't seem to mind the move at all. In fact he seems to have forgotten about his famous father. However Porter brings him back to reality by reminding him that the world isn't all fun and games and eating my food", we both laughed. We kept laughing at the tales of Ruan, since she was in his first period class.

(The River)

The date had been going really well. Although there had been awkward moments mostly by me... okay all by me, we still connected really well. After the Park we had gone over to what Kya calls the center of town, even though it wasn't. She said this because this is where you saw the most people of district four. We walked along the pier where people had been fishing.

The place had other people admiring the view of the river while others fished. The wooden walkway creaked under our feet at each step we took. We passed under bridges and passed market stalls selling fish, meat, and other various items. We decided to walk up some stairs up to the elevated part of where the river was. The only difference was that there were actual shops and restaurants, more people walking about, and you could overlook the view of both the port and the river.

"This is amazing, do you come here often?", I said leaning up against the railing of the elevated area. "Not so much, Myra took me here once and just like you I loved the view, but the fish smell wasn't all that great", she said laughing a little. The wind blew through my hair, it seemed like it was a lot windy up here. I smiled and looked over at her, "Myra, is she that cheerful shop keeper, you work for?", I said sarcastically.

She nudged my shoulder and smiled, "Hey be nice, she did take give me the extra apartment above her store", I was lost in her eyes that sparkled. "So you said John brought you over here?", I asked curiously. "Yea after John picked us up in his car, you fell asleep. He then dropped me off at the coffee shop with another guy named Christian who got me the job and apartment", she said. I blushed a bit, I would've seen her sooner if I didn't fell asleep. Why couldn't I had just stayed awake.

"That's impressive that you just accepted your new life, it took me awhile to get used to this place", I said my smile gradually going down. Her hand went on top of mine and she squeezed. "Well the thing is I wasn't really all that cool with it either. After I was dropped of and Christian got me settled in, I argued that i wouldn't stay but he just kept say that people were after me and wanted me dead", her words made me angry that Christian just said that and left, why would he do that? Kya continued on, "I didn't even know that you guys were relocated like me I felt so alone not seeing anybody'', I didn't want to see her cry. I put my free hand on hers, that was on mine.

"You shouldn't have been through so much and for what reason you were just left where you were, wasn't right at all", I said. She smiled at me, and I leaned into her arms and wrapped them around her and she did the same. _Why didn't John tell me she was her? How could keeping her from me be any harm for the both of us?_ These words ran through my mind.

We were almost knocked to the ground by a man followed by a small group of people. Talk about a ruined moment. His elbow had dug into my side, as he ran past us. "Hey watch it!", I yelled at him. However he didn't even acknowledge me. In fact there was a group of people crowded together, this intrigued both Kya and I. Metal bending police soon arrived about four of them running into the crowd forcing them back.

"Back up all of you! We're under strict order from Chief Bei Fong herself please move back and give us some room!", shouted one of the policemen. I started walking forward towards the group of people. "Khai, we shouldn't get in the way", she said. I was curious and knew she was to but I had to respect her decision. "All right lets go", I froze my heart stopped. My eyes widened in horror, and shivers ran down my spine. Kya saw this.

"Khai, whats wrong? Are you all right?", she said anxiously. She tried to get my attention but it was fixed on the scene. Metal bending police had pulled a body from an unknown ally way. The police shouted more and more to try to move everyone back. The more they did, the less I wanted to see. Policemen hauled a body off onto a gurney. Blood dripped from the man's mouth and his motionless eyes starred directly at me.

Kya could see it to. She starred in horror as they hauled out the body towards a nearby ambulance. Her hands covered her mouth. She hadn't known him like I did but anybody who saw a corpse with his neck slashed and blood dripping down onto his apron, couldn't be in a happy mood.

Bozu.. the friendly merchant I had knew back in Kyoshi Way was dead, murdered.


	14. The chapters just as long as this title

_Authors Note: This is a longer chapter then usual, I just had a lot of information to get out, sorry for those who enjoy short and sweet chapter._

* * *

><p>The smell of tobacco stained the air. Puffs of smoke rolled from Chen's mouth after he inhaled deeply. Dropping his cigarette to his side, his finger vigorously tapped on his cigarette making the burnt and crusted parts fall off. He head tilted towards the sun, absorbing the warm golden rays. He leaned against the wall, and glanced over across the street. Many people crossed the sidewalk as did on his side.<p>

His hand lifted towards his mouth and inhaled one final time, the smoke burning the inside of his mouth. A sensation of fire on the back of his tongue urged him for more but he had enough, dropping the still smoking cigarette on the ground. He stamped it out, with his foot.

The man in rags who sat across the street from him did not show his face, and as cars passed along the street his position did not change. On Chen's side of the street was the capitol of the district. Which had held White Lotus VP for the time being, who had come here to negotiate why they should keep faith in them and aware them of their true enemies.

Chen had lost interest in the man in rags. He glanced over at a group of reporters and newscasters who gather around the capitol stairs. Men and Women crossed the streets everywhere to see what was going on. Horns from cars blasted as stupid pedestrians crossed from unexpected spots. A van rushed past Chen, a gust a wind slapped Chen across the face and cleared some of the cigarette scent from the air.

The back of the van busted oped, following a female reporter and her cameraman rushing up to the capitol to get a good spot. She wore a blue button down shirt, her brown hair was tied back, and she wore a black skirt. Metal bending police had already been on scene, blocking off the stairs, front entrance, and the boundaries of where civilians could watch.

Chen watched her carefully, he had completely ignored the man in rags at this point. "Excuse me! Need to get through here. Please move, just trying to get through. Hey asshole move it!", she shouted. Chen snickered as he watched the reporter, "elegantly" make her way to the front line. He moved up a little closer, leaning against the wall and was in perfect view of everything.

He had been far enough so he didn't attract the attention of any of the police. Chen wore an olive green button down shirt, dark grey jeans, and a brownish fedora. He watched the female reporter use her "charm" to by pass others by any mean. _A bit of a bitch as usual eh?_ He thought to himself. Chen's body shivered for another cigarette but he ignored it. However the pack of smokes in his breast pocket didn't help at all.

The capitol doors. Everyone quieted down as Hulin Bei-son, VP of the White Lotus Party walked outside. Once he had reached his podium which had been directly on a special platform in the middle of the stairs everyone clapped. Hulin was a middle age man around his 50's, who had dressed in a nice black suit, red tie, and black dress shoes. A lot of people said he looked right for his position but for Chen he was just another criminal.

Chen spit on ground, and grinned showing his yellow stained teeth. "Our target awaits", said a voice lurking next to him. Chen turned his eyes dragging from starring at the VP. The man who had sat across the street from him, had causally walked up to him, however this did not shock or surprise Chen. He wore a torn brown shirt, stained dark blue shorts which had been torn, and his hair couldn't have been more scraggly and greasy.

"Yu, ya look good, haircut?", Chen said sarcastically. Yu grunted and spat on the ground at Chen's feet, he had been missing a few teeth. "Shut up Chen, when do we move?", Yu was eager and had been swishing around his saliva, getting ready to spit again. Chen sighed heavily, and he looked concern for Yu's health, but ignored it.

"Patience Yu, were about to witness our evidence", Chen said directing his hand at Hulin's direction. Yu mumbled to himself and fell to the ground, sitting with his legs crossed. He could have been mistaken for a hobo. Chen looked down at him, Yu had been drawing in the dirt, messing around with the sticks and rubble on the ground.

Hulin raised his hand for silence, which came shortly after. He spoke, "Thank you all for coming, I'm glad to see so many friendly faces in times as tough as ours. As you all are aware of the Equalists have lost full political control to our district. This is our home and we won't let it be taken over by the enemies which corrupt our nation that was built so long ago. May I remind you and all you Equalist who are watching that this city was created by two benders! One of which being Avatar Aang! The other being Firelord Zuko!", the people cheered, waves of clapping was heard like thunder, echoing across the streets.

Reporters asked questions, each one of them raising their hands and shouting like animals. It was almost like a mosh pit, except people didn't dress like tools. Hulin picked reporters, one by one, each asking a question. Yu, groaned as he sat on the cement. "How much longer?", he said irritably. Chen's head didn't moved, he just eyeballed Yu and looked back towards the VP. "Once he discloses himself", Chen answered.

The female reporter in the green shirt, shouted angrily so could get her question in. Her being the obvious pick, by almost elbowing another reporter in the chin. Hulin sighed at the childish behavior but he gave her, her chance. "Yes, mister Bei-son do we know who the current avatar is, and if not could it possibly be another issue like Avatar Aang? How would we protect ourselves, lets say if the Equalists invade. Let me not remind you of the school incident awhile back", she said eagerly.

Other reporters nodded in agreement to her question. Hulin thought for a moment, then answered, "While the College incident was a tragic, we do not know the current avatar. However this does not mean we are defenseless. More than half of this city supports the WTP and while the armies may be split we have the technological, strategic, and experience necessary for a evil revolution of the city", more hands clapped and heads nodded in agreement of his answer.

More reporters called out, shouting and their hands waving to obtain Hulin's attention. Questions went left, answers went right and all in the middle were cheering and roars of clapping. "Hulin's quite dramatic don't you agree Yu?", Chen asked. Yu didn't say anything he just sat against the wall, waiting and groaning impatiently.

"If this is a waste of time-", Yu was cut off. "Relax Yu, Admiral Geming says this is the guy and we listen to our leader. Right?", Chen interrupted almost as if he was saying this to a child. "Don't talk down to me you slime. Why was I teamed up with you and Monna, I want my old team back", Yu responded angrily.

Chen didn't say anything. There was no point to argue with a old man who still like playing in the dirt or stand up as a matter a fact.

"And what about The Pride?", shouted another random reporter. Chen and Yu's eyes widened. This was it, all they had to do was listen and if they were lucky they could go home and forget about each other for the rest of the day. Yu struggled to get to his feet but he did so instantly. Hulin stopped for a moment to think, then spoke.

"The infamous clan known as The Pride, is a very serious group that must be dealt with. This city will not sleep unless we assure you your political freedom is safe and not threatened by this group of tyrants! Their discrimination against you, your children, and your children's children will not be safe until this district.. no this city is fully guarded! The pridesmen numbers come in the hundreds, maybe thousands, but we will never know until we act! So right now I will act upon a curfew in this district and increase security so we can make it so you can sleep easily and safely at night, thank you!", roars of cheering, clapping, and people praising the WLP shook the city.

Yu looked at Chen vigorously and anxiously. Chen looked back and let out a short sigh and said, "Oh all right, I confess I heard it to. Now it's up to Monna now. Come Yu, lets find our way in", Chen said unenthusiastically. Chen left the crowd and headed down the street with Yu dragging behind him.

One of Hulin's advisers whispered nervously walked down the steps and whispered in his ear. Hulin looked back and nodded. "Alright well as you all sadly know this proud district has lost it's honorable representative due to a heart attack. Yes it's true we mourn him but we must moved on if we want to stop these pridemen. Inside the capitol we will be voting on a new candidate to take his place. I will allow one reporter inside to watch this honorable moment", Hulin announced.

The reporters went insane they pushed forward trying to get Hulins attention, causing the police to form a barrier and push them back. Hulin smiled greatly to see such patriots in his city. "We have your votes, we have your candidates, we just need eyes!", he called out, creating even more chaos. Hulin laughed widely.

A pinch, a mosquito? No it was different, a prick of some sort seemed to have injected a short amount of pain into the back of the VP's neck. He grunted a little, wiping the bug of whatever had caused him that pinch away, not realizing he just wiped away the only evidence that shown what is really was. Hulin walked closer to the crowd, smiling as if he had already forgotten about the pinch.

He felt as if his eyes had been growing bigger than his sockets. A migraine had started, puzzled by his good health in the past he was confused on what was happening but he tried his best to ignore it. A man, strong, well dressed, and looked the political type stood out amongst them all. Hulin new his choice, he started to raise his arm.

_The girl choose the girl! _ Hulin felt the inside of his head swell up. His brain was as if it had been underwater in a bowl that was his head. _The female, green shirt, brown hair, pick her! _Hulins arm was frozen, pointing knee level, when an unknown force was telling him turned his head_. _He had no choice but to comply. _Pick her and be free, remember nothing!_

Hulin immediately turned to the female reporter, pointing head level. "Congratulations madame, please follow me!", Hulin said completely forgetting about his head pain. "Thank you mister vice president! I promise, I won't be a burden..."

* * *

><p><strong>Chen and Yu<strong>

Both of them had had walked around the building, nothing they didn't expect though because it had been crawling with guards. They stopped in front of a television store, barred up windows protected the display case. Yu had looked around the corner to see the guards for himself.

"So what you told me in the past is that you can use your earth bending to dig out secret room or long tunnels", Chen said, popping his knuckles. Yu looked at him with the same angry expression as always, Chen was convinced that's all he'd ever shown. "Yes, and I know where your going with this, follow", Yu replied. Chen shrugged his shoulders and followed.

Yu pulled a key from under his shirt and walked over to the next building which had no windows at all. It could had been mistaken for a bar or residential home, but Chen wouldn't think somebody lived here out of all places. Yu struggled to opened the door, pushing and shaking the door knob. The door swung open, sending dust to fly off the top of the door, which had been hiding there for years.

Yu ignored the dust as they he walked into the blackness of the building, however Chen was a little more aware. Chen waved his his hands in the air, trying to clear the rooms of dust and whatever smelled like a rotting corpse. He didn't expect it to be spotless or anyone to clean it but it still smelled like shit.

The room was empty. No windows, carpets, bookshelf's, or painting had decorated the room. A floor and ceiling surrounded by for walls presented itself for Chen and Yu. Chen had known why they were here, it was just difficult to grasp the scent. Yu removed started to removed his torn, brown shirt.

"What the hell Yu, why do you need to take your clothes off to create a tunnel", Chen said putting his arm in front of his eyes, afraid of what more was coming.

"Shut up Chen, it's just my shirt" Yu said, scoffing at Chen. His old man body looked frail as it was about to shatter at any moment but that wasn't the first thing Chen noticed. A metal circlet ringing had rung around Yu's withered neck, however it did not seem to choke him. _What the hell?_ Chen thought. _What good is a neck brace on someone as misshapen as that_, he continued.

Yu turned around and drew back his fist. Chen grinned, there was more then that neck brace then he thought. A very long strip of metal ran down his curved back, along his spine. More strips ran from the side and hooked around his rip cage. It had disappeared within this pants but Chen could only think it went around his waist. Yu grunted and then his clenched his hands slowly bringing them to his sides, slowly the metal stripe down his spine began to straighten. His back was forced straight, from a frail old man he became a strong, earth bending juggernaut. He had also grown three inches.

Chen was more disgusted then impressed. "The brace straightens out my back, allowing my chi to run through me. This allows me to achieve my full potential of my earth bending skills", Yu said predicting Chen's question. Chen eyed him and snickered. "Well it also increases your vocabulary. I noticed your not talking in choppy sentences".

Yu said nothing but scowled at Chen. Yu then focused on the ground, with a quick punch he made the most neatly constructed tunnel anyone could imagine. The ground didn't even rumble, this was Yu's specialty, they both walked into the tunnel. Yu now walked straight and fair, he didn't drag nor stumble. In fact he walked faster then Chen.

"I've been meaning to ask, which is rare to me, but doesn't that hurt?", Chen asked. Yu grumbled and rapidly became irritable again. _Jeez for a guy to change his appearance he sure didn't change his personality_, Chen thought. Yu finally answered. "Chen you are lazy and are inconsiderate! If you must know I was born without feeling pain", Yu said grudgingly.

Chen ignored the random insults, he wasn't going to bother wasting energy of yelling petty at someone who could barley hear. They reached the end of the tunnel, Yu drew his hands up and grip each one, slowly bringing them together. This had crumbled the wall in front of them putting them in the basement of the capitol. They were in a storage like room. Barrels and box flooded the room. Rugs had lead to two doors on each end but the one on the far end had been blocked by box's.

"I must admit, your tunnels are very classy. How's about you make me a hidden bar one of these days?", Chen said slowly walking around the room. He tucked his hands in his pockets and looked back at Yu. "Shut up Chen, lets get through with this", Yu's deep scratchy voice had gotten in the way, he coughed and spat on the ground.

"Attractive", Chen said sarcastically as he searched through and empty wooden crate. _Nothing worth swiping_ Chen though. After they both explored a bit they walked to the only available door. Yu drew his arms to his waist and stepped back with his back foot. Chen eyes squinted a bit more than usual. He held his palm up to Yu's bare chest. Yu turned his head toward Chen, "What?", he growled softly.

Chen smiled, and tilted his fedora. "Six WLP guards, two sitting, three standing, and one nearly asleep, and three representative candidates are in the room, let me do something". Yu looked surprise, how had he known how many people were in that room? In fact why was he of all people actually volunteering to do work, usually the lazy bastard is trying to weasel his way out of something.

Yu didn't make a noise, he actually wanted to see this. Chen closed his eyes and pictured the room he had seen.

"What the!", "Hey!", "Help, Somebody!". Groans and quick cries for help from the room. The ground rumbled a bit but not to alarming. Chen reopened his eyes, smiling and motioned his had to the door offering Yu to go first. Yu glared at him, he quickly slid his front foot forward, shifting the earth to the point where it had launched the door far into the room. Yu starred in amazement, everybody was dead! but how, Chen didn't even see the men he had just assaulted yet they were all dead. The guards sitting on benches had been burying under piles of earth that had been forced out from the wall. Boulders laid on the other two and the remaining had been swallowed by the ground, only their hands shown.

Tapestries were shredded and pillars had ripped through paintings. It looked like the room crumbled and rebuilt itself, the place was in ruin's.

They both explored the room, all three reps had been killed as well. Yu examined a young, maybe early 30's representative. A rock striking them in the back of the head had instantly killed him. Yu turned around to see that Chen had switched his green button down shirt to the top of a brown suit which had been worn by one of the reps. He fixed his collar and looked at Yu and smiled sinisterly. "So.. What'dya think?", Chen asked, messing with his fedora.

"You reek of tobacco", Yu said showing no signs of positive emotion. Chen had a puzzled look on his face and shrugged, "That wasn't the question I asked but.. okay", he muttered to himself. "By the way the guards in front of the staircase are dead as well", Chen said as he yawned. Yu looked at him and back towards the other door the, what Chen said, led to staircase. Yu quickly opened it.

Chen was right! Both guards were down and two little pillars coming out of the walls. It had apparently knocked their heads together. "How did you?", Yu was in to much of shock to finish. "I can sense the vibrations through the earth, anything I declare my enemy that's in a certain area, is on the ground or worse", Chen said as he started up the stairs.

_That still doesn't explain how you can earth bend without even lifting a damn finger!, _Yu thought. They got to the top if the stairs and Yu had shot out a beautiful side kick sending the door flying into a civilian who had been walking down the hall. Papers he had been holding flew everywhere and the door turned vertically and crushed his throat. "Lets do this!", Chen said eagerly, trying to hold back his smile. In fact his casually whistled the whole way.

Three metal bending policemen rushed towards Yu, each launching masses of rock towards him. Yu spun around in the air, stopping the two shots instantly, reducing them to dust. At the same time he caught the third one bringing it down, slamming into the ground. Using his earth bending to make two pillars come out of the ground impaling two of the three guards, shooting and pinning their bodies to the ceiling. Blood rained down and ran down the pillar.

The third guard had already charged Yu, his fingertips covered with metal, aimed for Yu's Chi points. He rapidly shot out launching different fingers but Yu had blocked all of them. Striking the wrists and pushing them away he countered with a strong, almost unblockable punch to the gut. This sent the guard flying into a pillar that shot out of the ground.

Yu hadn't done it, he turned around to see Chen still walking casually and whistling. After he noticed Yu looking at him he waved and added a fake smile. _How was he doing this without moving!_, Yu's mind was in an uproar. "You want to join help at all asshole!", Yu shouted at Chen. Chen shrugged and didn't bother answering the question.

Chen closed his eyes as he walked down the hall visualizing everything that's happening, through the vibration in the ground. He had walked past a door that had just busted open, a guard came out already raising a large rock aimed at Chen's head. He shoot out his arm back when suddenly, the ground shifted. He was pulled back into the room, dropping the rock and the door slammed shut. The ground softened into dirt and wrapped itself around the guards body making its way up to the neck, the guard yelled as he was forcibly pulled underground and fallen into and airless chasm.

Chen acted like he didn't even notice! Yu starred in amazement, trying not to give him a praised look. However Chen new Yu hated him, he just liked toying with him. They continued to walk, and rounded a corner.

"How do you-"

"Later Yu, look ahead", Chen said interrupting him. Seven guards blocked the staircase leading towards the second floor, which was where they needed to go. Three jumped preforming a maneuver when slamming their feet into the ground it pulled up large slabs of stone, they sent it flying towards Yu and Chen. Chen didn't seemed worried, Yu raised his arms making walls of stone to break out of the ground covering Chen and himself from any enemy projectiles.

Yu's earth bending was strong enough to hold the large stones, that flew at them and more oncoming shots. They continued to move forward with their protection still out. Half of the wall forcibly broke, turning into little bullet type projectile that machine gunned down three of the guards. Yu looked worried, "Stop, your destroying our protection!", he shouted.

The guards downed moaned in agony as the rock pellets had pierced through their skin, breaking bones on the way. The remaining four had done the same thing Yu did and brought up protection from the ground. "just relax Yu, I'm only destroying my half, now watch this", Chen said calmly. He stopping walking. Yu had brought up thicker protecting from the wall. The whole room shook, any projectiles thrown at Chen had been instantly crumbled into pieces as if it had hit an invisible wall. Chen stood there with his arms crossed and a boastful grin on his face.

Everything thrown at him was useless, it only crumbled which boggled more in Yu's mind. In seconds it happened, the dirt under the building had guzzled through the cement floors as if he'd struck oil. Without even blinking Chen made the dirt wrap itself around each of the four guards.

"Whats going on!", a guard shouted. "Is he doing this?", another screamed. "Impossible, he's not moving!", another manage to sputter out.

The dirt had covered every part of the guards at this point, instantly the dirt imploded. Blood spewed out blood in every direction, bones were crushed to dust, body parts were torn and shredded, and were tossed all around the room. Yu was horrified, he didn't know if he wasn't seeing it right but Chen did all that and not only did he remain still, he remained motionless.

The room went quiet, the only sound was Yu's heavy breathing. "Tell me", said Yu with a horrified look. Chen rolled his eyes and signaled him to follow, "Oh all right but lets keep moving, I'm getting bored. Anyway here's how it works, the body is made up of chi points right? Chi points rest in the head, heart, arms, legs, chest, and back, almost like pressure points. However when struck the ability to bend become useless. I have learned over my years, impossible to describe really, but over my years I have learned to manipulate this to the point where I can shut off my chi points completely", they walked up the stairs.

Yu had been looking back and forth between policemen and Chen, he had defending his teammate who was more then capable of protecting himself. A policemen had came up from the ground, handcuffing Yu by surprise, however he countered with a spinning hook kick to the side of guards head putting him into a deep coma. he easily bending the bending right off and sent it flying into another guards heart, Chen continued.

"So when the chi is distributed, depending on what your bending type is, it become divided and less powerful. However when shut off except on one chi point it becomes amazingly powerful however you cannot bend with any other part of the body, for the time being. Now another good thing is that when struck by special chi blockers like Equalists, you do not loose you ability to bend because you had no chi there. I had mastered earth bending at the age of 15. I won national competitions, won championships multiple times, and at 19 joined The Pride", Chen was cut off my policemen shooting out the rocks that had fitted their gloved that looked like fists.

However they just stopped in mid air and were sent back at them but with twice the speed. "I don't care about your childhood, tell me about your damn ability!", Yu said impatiently. Chen's mood didn't change, he saw madness and anger a distraction so he had eliminated those emotions. They continued rounding corners and advancing floors, 3rd, 4th, and eventually the 5th floor. They had must've killed out 50 guards.

"Okay, okay it's coming. So by me converting my chi only to the chi point to my head, I can send out my earth bending abilities through my mind, without moving at all! However this requires tons of concentration. What I didn't tell you is that I had mastered the earth vibrations technique at age 10 and with those two abilities active and my elite earth bending skills, I can completely control my surroundings without lifting a pinky", Chen finished.

Yu was impressed that such a lazy moron like Chen could have accomplished something like this, and at an early age. No guards stood in their way, until they reached the roof. A flat roof laid and Yu and Chen casually walked out, Chen almost tripped on a piece of rubble. The VP stood surrounded by five guards, and behind them a private mini blimp stood that could hold maybe four men. Behind him was the female reporter.

The earth benders, each had rocks drawn up and ready to fire but Hulin wanted to say some last words. "You sicken me! People like you who take to much pride in their abilities need to be locked away forever!", Hulin shouted over the blimps engine.

"Funny, he sounds like Amon", Chen muttered to Yu. "However you are very dramatic", Chen said changing directions to Hulin. Hulin didn't say anything back.. to them.

"Kill them", he said to his guards. They launched multiple large rocks at the pridesmen. However both Yu and Chen stood completely still as Chen stopped the rocks and exploded them exploded in mid air and reverted back to tiny shards like shrapnel. Funny enough the guards kept luanching rocks until they recognized that their effort were useless.

"Would you like to try again?", Chen asked sarcastically. He didn't even hesitate, he sent the wall of shrapnel back at them. Slicing through the air impaled all expect for the VP, mist of blood spurting out of the exit wound. The Guards dropping one by one, blood flooding the rooftops.

"Your monsters!", shouted Hulin running for his private blimp. He started to climb aboard when his waist was wrapped in a water bind, throwing him at Yu's feet. He groaned as the cement split his chin, blood dripped onto his hand and his suit wasn't as clean anymore. His head now engulfed in a water bowl like prison, strained for air, he clawed at the water trying to pulling himself free, he was suffocating.

Chen and Yu watched at the female reporter known as Monna froze the water, encasing the VP head in a block of ice. "Ironically enough the bastard wasn't a bender, yet he was the VP of the WTP", Monna said, looking strangely at them. Especially at Yu who's body had been encased with that damn harness. She looked back at Chen who was dressed nicely then he had arrived, admiring his new look.

"Nice work, you assholes pulled it off perfectly. Not as subtly as I would had wanted it but it was done but the plan went as is. As you two did this job, those other sand bending dick heads, Kenten, Kessen and Sento assassinated the Equalist VP, they just messaged me", Monna said, still looking at their new apparel.

"New look.. nice", Monna said nodding in agreement at Chen. Chen nodded and gave a surprising look at Yu, who was scowling at Chen. "Oh shut up!", Yu growled. Chen laughed and they all walked off and entered the private blimp.


	15. Jun's Supremacy

_Authors Note: For those who like to read the connection of mastermind123's stories and my own, mastermind123's stories takes place catching up on the past two months that have passed since Khai's relocation. Mine takes place right after so, you wont be hearing much of Johnathon Porter from me, except his situation and the people it evolves like this chapter, Bao will hint about a situation he was in with John, however since that was in the past mastermind123 will write about it. I will leave another note saying when time is caught up and there are no more "filler like stories", however this one is of them :) (Describing the lives of the following people)  
><em>

* * *

><p>It was a direct hit into Vice President Hulin's neck. At this point the solution will coat the VP's brain with a syrupy feeling making the victim feeling fine at first, however he had already been under Jun's control once it had pierced his skin. However it hadn't been as affective since it had been such a small dosage but It will do the trick. Then when the coating dissolves it releases a toxin causing a quick but minor amnesia, like state.<p>

The VP stopped, and selected the female reporter who had been Monna, a water bender working for The Pride, who had been with with Chen and Yu. Hulin stopped and announced that Monna would come to witness the new representative of the district.

Jun smiled. His job was done, for now. Selling arms to the Equalists and The Pride was a perfect way of making money. Since his medical experiments were a little pricy, he needed a great way to make the money necessary to keep his project going.

"Dammit are you done yet!", Ty ce said, leaning against the ladder of a fire escape. Jun slightly glared at her, making the mistake of bringing her. _No wonder Bo gave me 20 gold pieces to get her to come with me, _Jun thought as he sighed heavily.

"Come on we're done here", Jun said calmly.

"About freakin' time!", Ty ce said throwing her arms in the air as a sign of relief. Jun rolled his eyes, as they he dropped ladder from ladder until he reached the ground. It was obviously she hated him but why? He shook his head, he didn't really care. They walked onto the sidewalk, starring at the crowd of reporters and cameramen. A breeze blew through Jun's blonde hair.

Jun wore only his black Equalist coat, however without the armor and mask it just looked like an ordinary civilians trench coat. Ty ce however wore her full armor without the mask and coat. Getting a few stares along the way but she ignored them her feelings cloudy with her supremacist idea's. She was dedicated to the Equalist party thanks to one of Jun's inhumane medical skills. She had been injected with Jun's toxin right after her interrogation. However she might as well be lobotomized because she was permanently under Equalist control.

Ty ce was one of the successful and most expensive patients. All of the others died a few minute after injection, the ability to control ones mind interested Jun ever since, the slaughter of his family. He starred at the reporters who were howling with anticipation as if they were the murderers themselves. Ty ce looked at him like he was insane...er.

"We're done? You mean, you blew into a dart tube and that was it? What the hell did you need me for, this was a waste of my time!", She said, eyes enraged with hate. Jun had to remain cool, he was saving his energy on the one person that killed his family, Khai.

"What was my part in all of this nonsense? You waste my time Jun, Bo needs my assistance!", Ty ce shouted as they walked down the road. Ty ce hadn't received as many glares as they did when the they came down. Bo struggled hearing the name of one of his families murderers, in fact he was working for two of them. "Bo's stronger then you imagine Ty, I'm sure he doesn't need any help", Jun said concentrating on keeping his cool.

"Please, he needs my assistance! How could he live without me by his side?", she replied angrily.

Jun could only imagine.

* * *

><p><strong>Kyoshi Way Capitol<strong>

"ID's please", the Equalist guard indifferently. He asked as if we had told him to piss off. Jun and Ty ce handed him plastic cards with their info on it.

Uninterested and bored with his job he abruptly looked at the cards, exhaling a quick shot of air onto the cards. He handed them back and granted them access.

"Ever think about doing something else?", Jun ask out of curiosity. The guard in the patrol booth gave him a blank and empty stare, "Yea, whatever", he mumbled to himself. The draw-bar lifted up granting them access into the main parking lot, however they had walked instead. _Asshole, _Jun's cursed at him in his mind.

Cars, vans, transport units, and heavy vehicles engulf the parking lot, however the both of them just walk straight to the front door. A rush of cold air flew their face as they walked into the enormous air conditioned room. There were desks as if it were the normal business level they just needed the main one or the front desk.

"Seeing as were here, I'm going to find Bo", Ty ce said as she walked away. Not giving Jun a chance to get in a response. He didn't care he just waited at the front desk. He looked around, Equalist banners and posters flooded the walls. Even cubicles and separate offices couldn't get rid of them.

"Yes?", the secretary asked. Jun had zoned out and realized he delayed his response. "I'm here to see D.L Bao", Jun replied. D.L meant district leader, depending on which party you were in. For the WLP it was just Mayor or just the guys name.

The secretary sent me off, entering an elevator the rounded just behind her desk. A district reps building was the highest of any building in any district, even the capitol of Republic City had it's height record. Jun slouched against the elevator wall, listening to the boring, monotonous music that could make even the happiest of people sad.. not to mention sleepy.

A bell chimed in the elevator, signaling the stop and the two silver double doors opened. Bao's office had been right their in front of him however he had been busy with another person. In fact it had been Bo who was the one who said, "Don't see Bao, you remember what happened?", yet he had already been inside his office talking to his father. No sound could be heard through the window but the scenes he witnessed of Bao's anger still interested him.

Jun slowly walked up the plexiglass window, Bao had seemed furious. Bo showed no signs of fear towards his father, _good just like he left him,_ Jun thought. The toxin that coursed his bloodstream had repelled any signs or thoughts of anger, which had been his previous weakness. This did not mean that the dosage Jun injected with was permanent, he could still feel anger but the idea would be drastically reduced.

Jun tapped on the plexiglass window, immediately getting their attention. Bao didn't seem as interested as Bo was, seeing the man who had injected him with the poison needed to be the man he was today. Bao pulled at his hair and shook his head at disbelief, he then signaled for Jun to enter.

Jun entered the door, now being able to hear everything. "It doesn't matter Bo, I don't care if I'm safe, I want them found and dead! There will be no trail!", Bao shouted. He was obviously still mad about the incident. He paced around his desk, not knowing how to react to his current state of anger. His desk was cluttered with papers, some of which being on the ground and waste basket next to his mahogany desk.

He had used his coffee as a paper weight, and seemed to unravel every paper clip. He had definitely gone mad, over the ransom incident, awhile back. "Look, yes dad we know your upset and were doing everything in our right mind to find them but you must remain calm. We don't want people thinking you can't handle your job", Bo said trying to calm him down.

Bao gridded his teeth his teeth, and turned his head towards Jun. "What the hell do you want?", asked Bao. Jun walked over to his desk standing by Bo, "My mission was a success, I handed over the paperwork for the new medicine you require", lying about his real mission. They talked a lot, arguing about shipment and ordering new weaponry and medicine.

"Jun sit over there, I need to talk with Bo about something", Bao ordered the first time actually being calm. Jun raised a brow but didn't bother asking question. He nodded and walked over to a far waiting area of the office and sat on a nice black leather couch. He couldn't help look over his shoulder, wondering about what they had been whispering about. Jun's thought quickly drifted off the subject, to enter his own mind, remembering the life he once had.

* * *

><p><strong>Jun (First and Third Person)<br>**

I had been raised in the city just as the Equalist party had taken control. All my life my family had been pressured into them. Ironically as it sounds but as the era of peace should've started the Equalists party had begun, however they were weak. They needed supporters and people to represent them, the leader of the party, Amon, used scare tactics and false propaganda to trick his supporters of fearing benders.

My father had been the previous Kyoshi Way district leader of the WLP and Amon continuously crammed his ideals of "The Era of Equality" down my fathers throat. However he refused every time, this got Amon angry.

Jun leaned back in the couch starring out the window at the view of the city and glancing back at Bao. He would never forget that day.

I was nine years old, when a knock was at his door. It was close to his bed time and I had just finishing dinner. Reading a book, called "Fire Bending Pride", a book that had been written about the Great War, discussing the evils of the fire benders. "Ah, Bao glad you could make it! Come in, come in!", my father proudly said, opening the door.

"Thanks Fen", Bao said, rubbing his hands together for warmth. "I tell you, the winter is a bastard season", Bao said laughing. My father, Fen had laughed also. Bao and his family of four had just moved to Republic City. He talked about Bo being in his top physical shape and good grades when he was in the College of Kyoshi. He also described Bo's dream of joining the EARC.

His son, Khai who had been a little younger then me had already entered his school on the lower campus. Bao talked about how he constantly trained him and how he was going to make him just like Bo. After that the only thing I could remember was that they went into my fathers den, talked and then, it was just chaos. My older brother and sister had been away, thank goodness for that but after a couple hours there was shouting, yelling, and just pure anger. What I was told by my mother was that, they had a "disagreement" about the Equalists, but back then I was to young to even grasp the contents of politics. The only things I had actually witnessed was his father yelling at Bao to get out of his home.

Jun glanced over his shoulder again, seeing that Bao had handed Bo some paperwork. Jun turned away, letting out a quick breath of bordem. He could recall everything that happened to his family that night, the pain and losses hes suffered, why he was forced to run and come back and serve them like some dog, and why he was forced to change his name. Jun had blocked out all outside noise to focus on the peace and quiet in his mind. He actually had to pinch himself at times so he didn't fall asleep, the couch had been very comfortable.

The second day came around, the violent screams and shutter could be heard pounding at the front door. I had just come home from school, icy cold chills shot down my spine as my hand connected with the door. My family hadn't been as wealthy as Khai's family but we still managed plenty. Opening the door slowly afraid to see the result, inflicted fear upon myself. The door fully opened, tears and cries came from me as his witnessed my own mother, dead across the entrance of the house.

"MOM!", I shouted dropping on his knees right beside her, continuously calling out her name as if she would awaken from her eternal sleep. I grabbed her and held her closely, tears repeatedly dropping onto her shoulder. I didn't want to let go, that was until I noticed the intruder, a black cloak covered individual standing at the corner of my kitchen.

"Wh-who are you!", I shouted trying to sound tough. However the tears from my eyes said otherwise. He, she, it didn't move, it stood in a black robe, with his hood up and the dreaded white plated mask with a red circle on the top. I was terrified of that mask, ironically enough I was surrounded by them. His hood was up producing a shadow over the top half of his mask, making him all the more intimidating.

He slowly approached me, carrying a bloody steel short sword in one hand. I backed up, forgetting about my mom which seems selfish but what more pain could she possibly endure? "If it were up to me, they would've lived", he said in a deep voice. "They", that word killed me.

"W-why?", I said, tears rolling down my cheek. "Because they viewed those evil, as leaders", another voice came up from beside me. I was startled at first but it seemed like he was their for a while. I had recognized him as Bo, Khai's older brother who had been leaning against the kitchen counter twirling a knife in his hand.

"Besides, Amon had ordered it, your family is weak, just like the WLP, and Equalists need strong people. The era of bending is over!", the other cloaked man said, pulling of his mask. It was Bao, my father friend who had gotten into the fight the other day. I was breathing to hard to speak, my mind still thinking about my mother and the outcome of the rest of my family.

Bao had been starring down at my mother, her blood had poured onto the rug. Bo quickly approached me, his knife aiming at my throat, that was until Zhon, my older brother intervened. His face had been bruised and bloody, he walk with a limp but he still had enough energy to slam his fist into the side of Bo's face. Bo instantly crumpled to the ground, ""RUN!", Zhon shouted trying his hardest to hold off against my father who had immediately come to Bo's aid.

I didn't know, how to react. Part of me wanted to stay and help Zhon, but the rest said take his advice. I made up my mind, I sprinted towards the door, slamming my body into the door to open it. A wall of cold air smashed into his face, he tripped falling to the stone walkway that led up from the street towards his front door. I brushed of the dirt that scraped my hands, and scrambled to my feet.

I turned around running as I looked over my shoulder, seeing my brother, stabbed through the chest by Bao. The rest of my family remained unknown until two days after the incident. I had lived with my godfather, who had been a lieutenant in the equality army, although he didn't tell me, until he actually made me join. My life seemed to be filled with irony, my godfather, whom I called just father, had been the officer for Bo, who seemed to reach high in ranks quickly.

After he heard about the incident, he had two difficult choices; turn me in or keep me safe. So he changed my name to Jun after his son, who had grown up and moved out, and he enlisted me in medical school to keep me out of the army, where I rose to power quickly in my training.

After doing some growing up and changing my looks, Amon put me in a special group of Equalist soldiers. For just my luck, two out of three of those men were Bo and Bao, I wanted to quit, but my godfather would throw me out on the streets if I did. So I became a sort of medical, Equalist assassin. When I reached 15, I became chief of medical staff, creating my own medicine and toxins and forming them to my own use.

The next day after I had the idea to control the human mind I decided to go for a walk. I hated Equalism, I hated Bao and his family, and I wanted revenge. It was my "Infamous Pride" I was so proud of, the thing that kept me going.

Jun looked thought for a moment, changing his position on the couch, he could have killed them at any time, however he had never been with them in private to do so. He could never find a right time so it just upset him more.

While walking I had met with a former Admiral of the fire nation. He had been preaching out from a podium of the most racist ideals of fire bending supremacy, however nobody listened to him, most of them either ignored him or insulted him. I smiled, thinking of a way to get back at the Equalists or at least make them struggle more. "Excuse me sir, can I have a word?", I asked politely, adding in my fake smile.

we talked for four hours, that day. Admiral Geming, had been very surprised at my level of intellect even as such a young age. As I got older, I only got more smarter and more devious.. some might say. I had encouraged him to form a group of all benders to stop the Equalists once and for all. Lucky for me he had hated them just about as much as I did. Adm. Geming had lost his supremacist ideals that day and took my advice.

Soon after about a week of searching he had found sand benders, a fire bender, a water bender, and earth benders each equipped with their own special ability. They became a infamous clan known as "The Pride" and I had been in control. In fact I had always been the creator. People had been mistaken that The Pride hand been created ever since the end of the great war but that had been rumored by Jun for intimidation purposes.

The Pride hadn't had hundreds or thousands of members, they had ten. However these member had their own unique amazing abilities the likes ordinary benders have never seen. I had allowed Adm. Geming to take charge, with their all bending supremacist idea's, with me being the exception of course.

However they had just been pawns for my own plan to take control of this corrupt city. Once Equalism and the WLP erupted in chaos, everything would fall apart and there will be need for a leader. I will take that chance and seize power and rule with my own supremacist ideals, why not I had the medicine to prove it...

* * *

><p><strong>Kyoshi Way Capitol<strong>

Jun's Supremacist thoughts had been knocked back to reality by the sound of Bao's coffee mug smashing against the wall. "I don't care if you can't find him do it, I want him dead! Jun get over here!", Bao ordered.

Jun rushed over to Bao, he hadn't noticed that Ty ce had entered next to Bo but he would have smashed his cup to if she was involved with anything. "Yes, sir?", Jun said innocently, putting on his fake smile.

"Look I want to search and bring back my son, find Khai! If he refuses, force him! If he attacks...", Bao had stopped their take in a big breath. Jun nodded and payed his respect towards his "superior". However when Jun finds Khai, he wouldn't be coming back at all.

Then turned around and left, bringing along his supremacist thoughts.


	16. The Knight, The Rook, and The Pawns

_Authors note: Another filler! :D, in the meantime go check out mastermind123's newest chapter! A lot of action, killing, and guns.. but for a good cause. However it would make more sense to read all of his chapters to get an understanding on what the hell is going on... please review both of ours and don't forget the time differences between our two stories!_

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><p>It had taken a while for the blimp to land, but when it did it had gone a little off course. Three members of The Pride, Chen, Yu, and Monna, walked had been both irritable and thirsty. They had not been on the in Republic City exactly, because they had just assassinated the WLP VP Hulin Bin-to, so they needed to get as far away as possible.<p>

They ended up having to land next to a dirt road, that had been in a forest leading to Republic City. However this hadn't been an entrance to R.C exactly but a mere path to see the beautiful Ruo River, the river that had been surrounding R.C but at the same time not disrupting its path. Luckily for them the there hadn't been any trees over heading the dirt road, otherwise landing would have taken longer or they would have had to land father away.

They all had gotten out of the blimp and proceeded down the dirt road. "Dammit, I get so airsick. I need a drink", Chen said holding his stomach.

"Relax Chen, were almost there", Monna assured him. Out of everyone in The Pride, Chen could not understand her. At times she was angry and hated working with them and other times she had been assuring and actually caring.

They walked down casually, they were in any rush, there was nobody who could stand up to three pridesmen at once. Taking on two during the assassination had been just insanity alone. Yu had been back to his hunched over, grouchy old self but he agreed with Chen for once, he needed a drink.

"It disgusting wearing those clothes Chen", Yu said in his usual deep voice. Chen looked at him strangely and remembered that he had taken the representatives suit but he liked it anyways, it had matched his fedora.

"Oh your one to talk, I must have been mistaken that it was me wearing the old, torn rags during the mission. Not to mention you were sitting in the dirt the whole time!, Chen replied angrily. Yu grumbled at Chen, however he had been right.

"I don't killed my enemies and take their clothes, it's disgusting!", Yu said back. Chen had glared at him, but shrugged. He had usually been the clam one but his thirst was getting to him. "Stop bitching the both of you, your going to make this walk longer then it has to be", Monna said going back to her old self.

Two minutes, it had only been two minutes before Chen lashed back out at Yu, "First of all, it was the top part of the suit! I didn't strip the man naked and skip around in his clothes! Secondly, at least my clothes are new, I don't recall you ever taking a bath in your life here!"

"Son of a bitch...", Monna mumbled to herself. Yu's eyes had been dead locked onto Chen's for a bit.

"What?", Chen replied.

"You can't shut up for more than five minutes can you?", Yu had let out a soft chuckle.

"C'mon Monna, why would I let Yu have the last word be that I wear dead man's clothes? That really is disgusting!", Yu slowly walked a little ahead of the two of them, glancing down at his feet.

"Your a fucking kid, Chen", Monna said, walking passed him to catch up to Yu.

Chen wasn't ever really childish, except the days he was hungry or thirsty. He had either been calm and smart, depending on who his team was that day. walking downhill they could fully see bits of Ruo River, and buildings of R.C . The trees had blocked most of there view but it was enough for them to still see the sparkling water.

Now the best part of this hiding spot was that if it had been spotted anywhere over near R.C the tree would make it so it was just a hillside. Covering up any roads, paths or buildings that the walkway led to. That did not mean that this path was home to only The Pride.

Monna had been the leader of a drug cartel selling dangerous herbs and plants into R.C. She had a great rich life, she was a powerful water bender, and her business was expanding! However, her cockiness had got to her, expanding was good profit however in her line of business is was not only illegal but dangerous. She expanded into the Equalist district and was taken notice of. Not like the WLP hadn't noticed it, it was just that they had the problem of Equalism taking over so they were more focused on that.

Even though Equalist were despised, they had a real hard time dealing with dangerous chemicals, they had already had that. The Equalist VP, before had called out squads to use I.T.D tactics (investigate and take down). Eventually she was found out but not caught. She was a really skilled bender, using the water in the air instead of motioning her arms to moved the water, she could slightly manipulate her fingers to freeze a person on the spot.

She used this more than anything, if a Equalist soldier came after her, she could either freeze his feet or trap him in a solid block of ice with tiny movements of her fingers. Then go in for the actual kill or run if she was in a hurry.

* * *

><p><strong>Monna (First Person)<strong>

_Abandoned storage facility_**  
><strong>

My heart pounded against my chest, my chi was strained and there was still more of those Equalist bastards coming after. I couldn't sit behind this boiler anymore, I have to act!

I bolted for the back door, my lungs burning and head sweating like it had been raining. I could hear voices, Equalist voices around me, however my mind was in another place to even try to make out what they were saying. I jumped of factory equipment and over desks, knocking over machines and sweeping papers of desks.

My foot connected with a typewriter, hearing it crash to the ground was the knife through my heart. "Over there! It's her!", voices ranged from ever direction. "Don't let her get away!", I knew if I knew if I was caught I would be killed, that's what these people all are about right?

Crossbow bolts impaled the walls and near my feet. Some had even torn my clothing but I had to keep running. I motioned my arms to conjure up a short wall of wall and froze it. I now had a shield on my left arm and was making another for my right, I was duel equipped. I could feel crossbow bolt slamming into my shield, however I was more worried of the shield's weight slowing me down.

I was nearing closer to the door, moving my shield at an angled and used it as a battering ram, smashing the door open. However I was only led into narrow alleyway, my faced smashed into the opposite wall. "She ran outside hurry!",_ Dammit this isn't going to work!_ I thought to myself. I knew my chi was strained but I had to do something. I got up, my face bruised by I didn't care. I motioned my hands towards the door. A thick wall of ice appeared, this should by me some time for my escape.

I darted down the alley, nearly tripping on the garage cans, only to run into two more Equalists. "Nowhere to run", one said cracking his knuckles. The other one evilly smiled at me. I panted hard but I didn't give into there intimidation attempts, in fact I didn't even let up, I thrusted out my hands and in a second the air that surrounded one of the guards, instantly became colder and froze.

"Look at her cockiness it's so funny to watch a HVT (High value target) squirm, eh Jin? Jin. What the!", the second guard turned around only to see his friend frozen head to toe, in a thick layer of ice. He looked back to me with horror, "B-bu-but you didn't even bend!", shouted the guard. "Catching on, asshole", I said squeezing my fist at him. He suffered the same fate, his fearful face was frozen in a sheet of ice.

A big smile come over my face, I had won but so I thought. A few quick jabs hit me from behind, turning around and falling to my ground both my bending and my ability to move had been stopped. A boy? No a teenager about 15 maybe 16, wearing and Equalist coat, stood before me, starring down. He barley let a smile show on his face and I thought this had been the end of me, then he spoke, "Hello, my name is Jun, I already know who you are Monna. You are a very powerful and unique bender, I have a deal to make with you involving your abilities...

* * *

><p><strong>The Pride<strong>

After that that kid took Monna to a guy named Adm Geming, where she joined The Pride. Yu could see that she was thinking about something painful but he didn't want to get involved, he knew his place.

A large tavern could be seen, they were getting pretty close. "We're here", Monna said.

"Finally!", Chen shouted eager for alcohol.

Entering the tavern which had no name, there was a thick layer of dust on the tables. Wooden tables, and bar stools were everywhere. A paradise petty thieves, crooks, and war criminals loved this place. However it never seemed to hold more then five customers a day, Monna wondered how it stayed in business. They went to go talk to the bartender when something caught Chen's eye.

A lone man by the name of Delun, sat a table by himself drank strong whiskey. Monna and Yu didn't seem to notice their own clans member having a drink on the surface. Chen walked toward him, until he was noticed, "How much you going to tip the bartender" **(Code: Are you on a mission?****)**, Chen asked.

Delun grinned, he was smug for an outlawed water bender. He had been kicked out of the northern water tribe for thievery, conspiracy, and attempted murder. By "kicked out" I mean he broke out of jail when his execution was two days away, he came here and his abilities were noticed by Adm Geming and was later initiated.

"Only if he cleans this place up" **(No, on my own time)**, Chen was surprised he had never seen him on a mission, he had usually been with Mao but he had hanged out underground. Mao was the scouts men of the clan but he still like to sit around and talk with Delun. Monna walked over and greeted them both.

"C'mon Chen let's go, I can't bare to see the bartender spitting in the glasses and use his rag to clean them anymore", Monna said. Delun laughed, making Monna a little uneasy knowing there was a fellow pridesmen above ground.

"Wait, what about my drink?", Chen replied, turning around to see the bartender spit a large wad into the cup. "Uh.. never mind, there's water underground", Chen said. Monna smacked him upside the side, "Quiet, Chen!", Chen rubbed the back of his head.

Delun could help but to chuckle a bit, "That's why I bring my own..", Delun said in a smug tone. Chen's mouth watered, he needed something to drink and water didn't burn on the way down. Chen settled down a bit after, he walk out back. The back of the tavern had been like a maze almost, huge pillar like rocks shaped this yard shaped it into what it was.

The three of them walked through the field of stones, until reaching upon one the had fire nation symbol on it. This hadn't been the clans symbol, it was one of Adm Geming's patriotism towards the the fire nation, since he didn't hate any other bender, he had to show his loyal pride some how.

In one swift motion, Yu thrust his arms out to create a tunnel leading down into their base, since his back brace was up it actually took more chi out of him then usual. They each proceeded one by one, sealing the entrance behind.

* * *

><p><strong>The Clan<strong>

They walked out of the tunnel, now in plain view of every pridesmember down in the except for Mao and Delun. There was many rooms down in the sanctuary, the bar being the biggest and most spacious one. They were greeted on the way in by Kessen, an elite sand bender with a big mouth.

"You guys go ahead and relax, I'll report it to Adm Geming", Monna said. Yu and Chen nodded, each splitting up, Chen to the bar and Yu to his room. Now the others parts of the sanctuary were just dirt, dust, and grime, it was fairly clean. Stone tablets made up the walls around the base holding in the dirt, and the floors had been the same.

Chen had been had joined Sento at his table. He was reading a book and at the same same enjoying his shots. "You know you don't look like much of the nationalist you say you are.. let alone a drinker", Chen said taking a sip of his gin.

"What did you expect me to be Chen?", Sento said quietly, not even glancing at him.

"Well I don't know, whoa don't me wrong, I've seen you bend and your good, you just need a little intimidation boost that's all", Chen said guzzling down his gin. Sento put the book down and have Chen a look of curiosity. "I drink sometimes, if you must know", Sento replied.

_Wow what a party monster.._ sarcastic thought flooded through his mind. Sento glanced up seeing Kenten passing by with a very large curved blade in his hand.

"You training, Kenten? With that ankle?", Sento asked. "Yes, leave me alone, I don't need your guidance", Kenten replied firmly, walking away. Sento lowered the hood on his brown cloak, that had been similar to the Equalists but a different color. Chen looked back at Sento, "Whats up his ass?", he asked.

"Nothing"

"Nothing?"

"Yep"

"Okay, what the hell is going on, it's a fucking ghost town in here!", Chen was getting irritated, they were the only ones in the bar and it usually was a lively place. Sento angrily pulled his hood down and set down his book in the same action, "He's here", he whispered to Chen.

Chen lowered his head to make himself less heard, "Who's here?", Chen asked anxiously.

* * *

><p><strong>Monna, Geming, and Guest<strong>

The underground part of the sanctuary was an absolute cave and those who couldn't navigate it's tunnels would have gotten lost. However they were no match for Monna, she had memorized them by heart and if she wanted to, she could navigate them blind folded.

She reached, Geming's personal quarters and knocked on the wooden door. "Come in", Geming said firmly. Monna opened the door to see Adm Geming sitting on his desk, which had been in the middle of his living quarters. His brown cloak covered mostly every part of his body except for his silver beard and a black eye patch the wore over his left eye.

"S-sir, I like to report that the m-mission was a complete success", Monna said bowing to pay her respects. Geminig could tell she was nervous about visiting him, everyone was except for Delun who never was nervous about anything. "Don't be nervous Monna, that's a sign of weakness!", Geming said completely ignoring his papers, "But yes good, the White Lotus vice president Hulin is dead. Kenten and his team just arrived moments ago reporting the same thing but with the Equalist VP", he continued.

"A job well done, Monna"

A voice rang out from behind her, she nearly jumped pulling out water from the air and freezing them into her own wrist blades, however they looked more like attachable scythes. Jun had been sitting in a chair with a folder on his lap, it was outstanding that he had remained out of sight, Monna hadn't even noticed him.

His smile was confusing, an unreadable smile that no one could detect if it was fake, until they made a wrong move. "Oh, it's you. Forgive me sir I-I didn't know", she said converting the ice back into water. Jun's smile lowered to a mild grin and walked over to Geming, "Geming's right Monna, nervousness it a sign of an immoral distastefulness I'd rather not see in this group!", Jun's grin had been wiped away, replaced with a more serious outlook.

"Immoral sir?", Monna asked.

"Yes, very. Why would you have to be nervous of one another? We are all human aren't we? Brothers and sister of the same family tree of lies that those oppressors have turned us into! We now fight one another for survival! OUR OWN BLOOD!", Jun's facial expression hadn't been unseen by Monna before, an almost furious look swept upon his face. "Life doesn't favor weakness Monna, remember that. When I get into power, everything will finally be at peace at last, no more violence from the people, no more of this fucking Equalism and White Lotus Republican idea's, and it will all be because of me", Chen finally finished saying.

"Yes sir, you will lead us onto the path of victory! The Pride shall rain supreme!", added Geming. "Monna pledge yourself onto Jun, shun your weakness!", Geming ordered. Monna took a moment to get a hold of her breath, she hadn't like having two superiors at once yelling at her. All her life she was her own boss, and killed those who betrayed or abandoned her.

She got a grip on herself, _Jun had saved me and put me into a powerful new group, I pledge my services onto him, until my time has come,_ Monna thought to herself. She stood firmly at attention, "Yes sir, I pledge myself onto you, my apologies for before!", she said strongly.

Geming looked at Jun, "Sir if I may.. We have received info from Mao about this Khai kid, and you know about Mao's explosive expertise, should he continue?", Geming asked.

"No! I want him alive.. for now. I will be the one to kill Khai in the end, and anyone who defends him. Where is Mao now?", Jun said. Geming looked down at the information he had gotten from a messenger hawk. Messenger hawks had been out of use for a while now but it was the only safe way for the Pride to contact one another.

* * *

><p><strong>Mao<strong>

Mao sat on top of a building not close from Khai's location. He had brought a girl with him, in fact it looked like she had been with him for a while now. Mao's eye's squinted, his brown cloak blew in the wind as did his red skeletal bandana that hung over his mouth.

Mao saw that Khai had been talking with another girl for awhile now. After talking for a moment, she wrapped his arms around and kissed him on the cheek. Mao's arms were shaking heavily, the pain in his arms had been going away but left behind a severe shocking feeling that would remain in his chi paths.

_One shot Mister Khai, and it'll be all over...all over_, Mao said followed by an evil laugh.


	17. The Rook

_Author's notes: Well this will probably be my last filler for now. Thank you mastermind123 for letting me use Your characters in this chapter. Oh and by the way, Five Finger Death Punch is absolutely amazing.. oh right my story, enjoy and please review. _

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><p><strong>Ruan and John<strong>

"Ruan, what the hell is this?", Ruan took a moment to look at what John was asking as he put the rest of the groceries in the refrigerator.

"I believe their called peanuts..."

"I know what it is but why did you get it? It wasn't on the list of food.. in fact you got nothing I needed, are you crazy what happened to all the money I gave you?"

"I'm not crazy, a little nuts, but not crazy..", as Ruan laughed a bit, John rolled his eyes at the pun he had set Ruan up for. John scrambled through the bag searching for anything that might have been useful to them. Pulling out a six pack of what had been alcohol, John tried to examine it but it did not even look drinkable.

"What the hell is this?", John asked pulling out the six pack of an unknown substance. Ruan turned around to see John dangling a can from his hand, and grinned,

"It's alcohol"

"Beer?"

"What the hell's beer? No, it's cactus juice", Ruan replied.

"That makes no sense..", John said opening up the can, hissing as he pulled of the tab. He drank a little and swished it around, trying to get a taste of the flavor. After getting a grotesque look on his face he spat it out, despite still being in Ruan's apartment, "Tastes like soap", John said wiping his mouth.

"Pretty damn good soap", Ruan replied with a cocky smile.

"Yea well, cactus juice still makes no sense"

"Well neither do you and your team", Ruan tossed another can to John. The coldness of the aluminum can had pierced his skin, once caught. John looked at it disgusted and tossed it on the bed, "You no, I'd rather stick to my own poison", he said. Ruan shrugged and guzzled half of his can down.

John continued to search through Ruan's groceries, still finding nothing to his liking. _Jesus Christ, this guy wastes more money, then I do trying to track down Robertson_, John thought **(I'm going to explain Robertson and summarize what has happened in the last two months****, since the** **relocation in my next chapter)**_. _John got irritated at how wasteful Ruan had been.

"How much you got left?", John asked.

"20 yuans"

"yuans? I thought it was gold peices?", John got a little worried at the sound of the new money.

"Yea apparently the Equalist have imposed a new currency on Republic City and copper, silver, and gold pieces are actually worth less"

John rubbed his head, he slumped down on the bed, nearly sitting on the can he threw earlier, "You kidding me a new damn currency.. fuck", John murmured to himself. Ruan closed the fridge and sat on the wooden chair that had been in the poor excuse of the kitchen, kicking up his feet onto the table.

"Problem?"

"Well now I have to exchanged all my money, which now we'll have less then we thought, and you blew most of it on damn food we don't need. Like that shit juice", John said grieving.

"Cactus juice", Ruan corrected him.

"I know what I said", John replied glaring back at Ruan. He shrugged and opened the shades revealing the outside. He could see perfectly down the road, including the coffee shop. "Do you know where Khai is?", John asked. It had just come to his mind that Khai had been gone the whole day, he hadn't shown up for sparring. Ruan looked around, just noticing that Khai had been gone he had remembered seeing him walking down the road, when John had forced Ruan to pay his rent with training.

"I think he went into town"

"For?"

"Ah don't know, hey so how's Korra been lately? Does she talk about it. I know it's been awhile since the incident but hey I would be to" **(once again the incident will be explained later on but to read it now visit mastermind123**** along with his other past missions during the two months)**, Ruan said rocking back and forth on one leg of the chair. John got up, standing at the foot of the bed now he responded, "She's fine, she's the avatar she's pretty good on her own. She'll be better once she learns air bending from this Tenzin guy".

"Tenzin? Oh yes, on air bending island I remember him, he's quiet famous", Ruan said.

"Well an air bender in today's time isn't really common Ruan, of course he's famous", John said sarcastically. Ruan rolled his eyes, still rocking back and forth in his chair.

"You know you didn't really answer my question", Ruan said

"What?"

"Does, she, still, talk about it, Ruan said almost as if he was trying to spell it out. "She's fine jackass, yea she talks about it but she's cool. She mostly talks about defeating Amon and how she must master air bending to do so. However I suggested many times to take the prick out myself", John added confidently.

Ruan laughed a bit , but looked right back out the window. "I'm going to take a walk, wanna come?", Ruan asked kind of realizing the awkward date reference he had just made. "Uh maybe later, I still got to report back to my team. Remember don't buy anything!", John added.

"Fine, fine relax.. oh however I bought this phonographic machine today!", Ruan said proudly holding up the music player that had been hidden on his side of the bed.

"Jesus...", John sighed.

* * *

><p><strong>The Rook.. and Ruan<strong>

Ruan had been walking for quite some time, and in that time he had found no trace of Khai. Not that he was looking in him or something, Khai excelled at his training and he was good in a fight, He was actually thinking about getting a new sword or some kind of weapon.

Ruan had wandered onto a pier, gazing out into the open water, it sparkled continuously. The only problem was that there was nobody here, no boats docked or people for that matter. Ruan had noticed this from the very start as he entered. He had always cut through the docks to get into the Yangchen main market area and every time he was always thrown out for trespassing even though he's told them over and over.

Large crates that would have usually been on a cargo ship now laid on the ground, stacked on top of one another. Some had already been open with moving equipment already inside them, as if someone had actually been here, but there was nobody.

Ruan wandered further into the docks, surprised to the fullest extent, he found nobody. _ Eh, might as well take my advantage__, _Ruan thought. He continued to walk, until the radiant heat from a nearby explosion came open the barrel next to him.

The blast sent him flying into barrels toppling over one another continuously, until they had covered Ruan. _Dammit! My arm.. it hurts so bad!_, Ruan wanted to shout so bad, the burn on his arm hadn't been as bad as to reach first or second degree but to the point where it could still cause massive pain.

"What the hell was..", realizing he had been talking to himself, Ruan stopped. Struggling to get up, he held his left arm. It had been painful if he had touched it.

"Equalist scum! You don't deserve to live!", a voice echoes across the docks. Ruan was horrified, someone had been trying to kill him, he looked over seeing smoke rise from where the blast had came from.

"Immoral, dangerous, corrupt, sinning! These are the only a few characteristics that describe people like you!", the chilling voice echoed again. "Once our benevolent leader is in power, all of your kind will be gone! The generation of the living dead shall fall and life will be reborn anew!", it continued.

What the fuck was this person saying? Ruan was at his feet ready to move, in any case of another attack. "Where are you, show yourself!", Ruan demanded. The voice laughed, coughed a few times but continued to laugh a sound that even the the avatar would find disturbing, it was a chilling sound.

"Your in no position to be making demands sinner!", The voice echoed. Sinner? That made no sense, Ruan knew he wasn't perfect but sinner? What was this person a cultist? "Listen I agree I'm not perfect but how does blowing me up make me better or in any case make you any more a glorified person?

"You sin onto yourself! A human like yourself should be kind, caring, honorable but to think you use you abilities for corruption. Your just a spineless, a weakling, struggling to try to crawl to the top!", The voice had appeared itself behind Ruan the whole time. Ruan was shocked to see that he had been there the whole time. He was starring down at him with bloodshot eyes. He wore a brown cloak, and a red skeletal bandana over his mouth.

_Who is this guy to tell me who I am?_, Ruan thought. "Hey look asshole, I'm not the greatest person in the world and I know that! But how does killing someone help you to become someone better?", Ruan replied.

"I will exterminate all those who impose themselves onto others, those who declare themselves supreme!", He replied ignoring the question altogether. _Alright talking sense into this guy wasn't going to work, might as well get something out of him_, Ruan thought to himself. "Well since you not going to answer my question, who are you? Or are you going to give me a whole rant of how I'm not perfect...", Ruan couldn't help but to laugh as he said this.

"My name is Mao, might as well tell you before your death, and I represent The Pride!", Mao shouted with "dignity"

"All right, now tell me all your plans while your at it..", Ruan said with a boastful tone. Mao look down on him with more anger then before. "Insolent brat!", he shouted. Ruan hadn't seen hit coming, Mao through out his hand sending a stream of fire barely the size of a laser pointer, three feet in front of Ruan. However it hadn't been fire.

A small explosion yet needed to push Ruan back more erupted as the stream of fire instantly hit the ground. Sending Ruan back into another giant cargo storage unit. _Dammit it burns!_, Ruan wanted to scream, he had fallen back on his burnt arm but that didn't nearly as interested him as the fact that this guy could shoot explosions from his bandaged arms, as silly as it sounded.

Mao's arms had completely bandaged from his shoulders to his fingertips. Ruan ran for cover, around the storage unit, feeling the heat waves of another large blast from behind him. "Seriously, how the hell man?", Ruan shouted as if he was trying to lighten the mood.

He could here Mao hopping down and walking over to the nearly destroyed containment unit that Ruan now stood behind. "I see you interest my ability, the ability I earned from my own training! No body takes my skills away!", Mao said, this time he breathed in releasing strong energy from his forehead. This had went straight through and blown the wall the Ruan had been behind, sending him into the air with the wall of the storage unit on top of him. Luckily for Ruan it hadn't been that heavy.

"Seriously do you mind shutting up?", Ruan asked, crawling out from under the broken rubble. Mao casually walked over, "Amazing you can be the most degenerated person ever, taking my blows and yet your still an annoying son of a bitch", Mao added. He walked around to the side of Ruan, kicking him in the stomach causing him to flip over onto his back. Ruan lashed out in pain, clutching his stomach. How can he beat someone like this? Was all his training a waste of time? no he wasn't going to back down.

Despite the massive pain he had been in, he flipped himself over until his foot connected with Mao's stomach. Mao quickly backed up, almost as if he had ignored the pain. He pulled his bandana up, that had slid down a bit. Ruan got to his feet and came at him.

Mao had been trained in fighting. Throwing out a couple quick punches, countering with his back, he managed to see how Mao blocks and how get leaves his guard down. Ruan found it. Exactly as Mao blocks the counter punch, his area opposite of his heart is fully opened. It might not have been the most effective spot, but he had a shot and he was taking it.

The counter punch was blocked, stead of again following up with the other hand, he used the same one to attack repeatedly at that spot. Mao grunted as he was hit directly but he had been in much worse positions. He drew his hands back, and swung his arm, creating a semi-circle of flames in Ruan's direction. Ruan fell backwards catching himself in a bridge position with his stomach facing up, not the best spot to be in.

Mao brought his foot up in an axe kick form, bringing down his heel that also dragged flames with it. Ruan had hit directly in the stomach, but not before he lashed out his foot, hitting Mao in the groin. Clutching his crotch, Mao gasped for air. Ruan also laid on the ground curled up clutching his stomach, _Fuck!_, he thought.

"Your... Going.. to pay!", Mao shouted, trying to get his balance. Vicious, ear smashing, bangs came out from a distance. Sparks flew out of the containment units as little hole suddenly appeared in them. "What is this?", Mao said horrified. Ruan Curled his head back, to see John running up to him, with an assault rifle in his hands, repeatedly shooting, in an up-side-down view. Mao didn't let up, using the smoke from the fire, he launched at his feet creating a smokescreen so he could run.

"Cowardly bastard!", John shouted running towards Ruan. Ruan had been beaten up pretty badly, he had a large black imprint of Mao's heel, and the surrounding burn. "Jesus.. Ruan you look like hell, what's going on? Who is he?", John said, helping Ruan to his feet. Ruan could barely stand, his whole body ached.

"He's a p-pridesmen, his name is Mao and his shoots e-explosions from his body. Funny thing is he's delusional and can't carry out a full conversation", Ruan said trying to catch his breath. John had a confused look on his face, explosions? _Damn another thing to add to my shit list,_ John thought.

"Okay, so what do you mean-"

Ruan had shoved John away, putting all his strength in the last push, which would have been fatal for John. As John was sent backwards, he could a thin stream of fire, or maybe a red line, crossing his path. It impacted into the ground this time closer to Ruan's feet, the explosion was of medium size, Mao did not want to underestimate his opponents again.

The force slammed against Ruan like a wall, sending him into a storage crate. John was more lucky, only suffering minor damage but in the force of the blast made him lose his gun. _Dammit!, _John thought. He got to his feet only to be repeatedly attacked with fire. Mao hadn't let up, thrusting out his fists red flames, emerged and burned everything in it's path. Grabbing a piece of sheet, from the rubble that had been on the ground he angled it upwards. As he ran John could feel the intese heat, slam against the sheet metal and he knew it would last long. However he hadn't come unprepared.

"Son of a bitch!', John shouted taking out a pistol from his holster. Blind shots fired, loud noise could be heard from their apartment and would surely attract other attention. Mao stopped, to produce another smokescreen like evasion to escape from John's shots. John stopped taking out another clip of bullets and loading it into his gun. "Your friend is weak-minded", Mao's voice rang out and echoed throughout the dock. "He may be a pest but at least he can carry out a full conversation.. kinda", John said pulling back on the top part of his gun. His gun clicked back, and was ready to fire again.

"Oh I'm very capable of carrying out a full conversation mister... uh forget it. Why should I waste my intellect on some waste-of-a-life, who can't even withstand my intensity of heat?", Mao said changing his tone. John hadn't known him for a very long time but he could tell that this guy wasn't as dull as Ruan said. Just as Jun he had been perfect for being the spy of The Pride. He could change his personality and almost become another person, it was like he had multiple personalities stored away for certain occasions.

John was confused, this guy went from a wiley fire bender to a top-notch fighter. John knew now he couldn't let his guard down, "Who the hell do you think you are?", John said trying to by time. He found cover behind a pile of wooden crates and dropped the old used up bullet shells onto the ground. John knew he wouldn't be very protective but he knew the guy wouldn't attack when he talked, so it would have to do while he made his plan.

"Fine, mister uh.."

"It's Porter, Johnathon Porter but you just call me Porter"

"Well mister Porter if you oh so want to waste my time, so be it. I don't have anywhere to be in an hour so I might as well kill some time before your death", Mao said. John hadn't seen where Mao was hiding, that's if he was. For all he knew was that he had been just toying with him.

"I.. I was a mercenary, actually more like a bomb terrorist, seeing as that's what they called me", Mao began, his voice got soft and less threatening. John was suddenly intrigued, he had been thinking about his ability to shoot explosions.

"I was merely a tool for those who sued themselves for their greedy wishes. Worse of all I didn't realize what I had done until it had ended. I was weak, immoral, and a coward at best", Mao continued, his voice getting darker. "I was a bomb terrorist for the Equalist party, I had killed so many and had hurt so much more. I had been the judge, jury, and executioner so many damn times!"

"Wait how could you been with the Equalist party? They hate benders", John interrupted, his gun was ready.

"And they still do, however they needed power to start things off. So Amon hired me to bomb several districts with my Fire Spark Technique, making me believe that murders, terrorists, and others guilty of treason. Turns out he had just conned me into creating his propaganda of making people believe benders are evil", Mao paused for a moment.

John had been more focused on the subject of the Fire Spark Technique, Mao had mentioned. John thought about what he heard. Mao had been lied to for such a long time. However, what he was doing did not give him the right to do what he was doing.

"I had questioned those who I didn't even know. Those "Sinners" I had bombed.. turned out to be regular families who had supported the White Lotus Party. I realize now the real sinners, those who impose themselves on others for any reason! Equalists especially, that's why I attacked Ruan.. but you, your odd there something different about you", Mao said curiously.

John couldn't help letting out a quick laugh, "Let me guess, the name right or is it my gun?"

"Gun? Please, I am not afraid of your advancement of technology. Besides anyone who defends an Equalist piece of shit!", Mao said.

"See there you go! Your judging others again!", John replied.

"No, I don't judge. Equalists are the definition of evil! Every one of them trying to do something to mess with the minds of others. I've met with some when I worked for Amon, all they talked about was complete control and eliminate those inferior to them. District after district, they all talked about the same fucking inhumane things! Some had even talked about how they were going to bomb hospitals, others talked about schools, but now I realize they're all the same and should die!", Mao finally ended.

_There's no way I'm going to convince this nut to stop,_ John thought. He looked around trying to figure out what to do but he needed more time and he had to be careful what he says or he'll attack. "What is that.. um, Spark Flame Move you said awhile back?", John asked looking through the creases of the crates trying to get a look.

"Fire Spark Technique, Is my ability to shoot explosions or "loaded chi" as one might say. Being a fire bender I can concentrate my chi to shoot powerful balls of fire, however I advanced further. I can still do that but get to the point where it.. "overloads", as you might say, building up so much. I then condense it all into the only three chi paths I can shoot it from. My forehead, and both arms. Sending out a thin spark, type line and when it hits something, it'll expl-", Mao grunted heavily, and John heard a loud thud.

Looking over the boxes, aiming down the sights of his gun he saw Ruan, black and bloody. Some how he had still had the energy to get up and slam his fist into the side of Mao's face. Mao got up, panting hard and brushed off the dirt. John could tell this was Ruan's last attack, he was to injured to pull a stunt like that again. Mao was in full view of John's line of sight, he pulled the trigger.

The sound of a lone click, interfered jamming the barrel of the gun. _Shit! I always clean these parts, why the hell would it jam now?_ John wondered. However the horrors had just began, the red bandanna that had been tied around his lower part of his face fell, revealing his horrific, grotesque, and rotten part of his face. The skin was so burnt, that the tendons connecting the jaw could barley be seen but still visible. His lips were gone and the right part of his cheek had been torn, revealing his back teeth.

John's eyes grew and his stomach felt queasy. "What the fuck...", that was all John could say as he watched the grotesque pridesmen put back on his bandana. "I had been in an accident involving my abilities", Mao's voice seemed darker then before.

"How?", John's fingers were still on the gun but the sight he had just witnessed had been burned into his head. John didn't even realize that Ruan had fell to his knee's, his hands trying to prop himself up, and he didn't say a word.

Mao couldn't answer John's question, his injury was his greatest weakness. If the Fire Spark Technique's weakness was ever exploited, he could have easily been defeated up close.

"Mao!", a voice rang out of nowhere. Both looking up they could see another man wearing a brown cloak, just like Mao.

"Go away Delun! I'm finishing up here, I'll be back in a while!"

"We have to get back, Adm. Geming orders. What are you doing fighting like this, you know your the weakest"

Rage built in Mao, glaring at Delun, but he knew he couldn't let down his true superior. He was very happy to be working for Geming, ever since he found him. Geming was the only one that seemed to share his true. Pulling the trigger over and over, the gun still jammed. John didn't know what the hell was wrong.

"Look at them Delun, they're both weak! I could kill them right now, they're both here!", Mao insisted. Delun starred down at Porter and examined him carefully. Finally letting out a cocky grin, he had thin but long black hair that blew that made him look more intimidating.. or a slacker on Yu's part.

"You could kill them later Mao, but now Adm. Geming has his plans ready to be carried out and they need all of us", Delun said. _Admiral Geming_.. _great another man to add to my shit list..,_ John thought. An explosion of black smoke, impacted the ground like a tiny hand bomb, looking up John could see that the other member, Delun had disappeared as well. John didn't want to face the both of them, not alone. He wanted someone to watch his back, just in case one of them wanted to pull a cheap shot on him.

He rushed towards Ruan, who had been lying on conscious. Ruan had looked like a total mess, his skin was burnt and some of his bones were probably broken.

But the thing that worried John the most hadn't been his outward appearance.. Ruan wasn't breathing.


	18. Return of our Hero?

_Authors Note:_ _Okay back to the main story! And like I've said a million times, for those of you wanting to know more information of the last two months and unknown missions that occurred, go to mastermind123 stories for some recaps on situations and awesome navy-seal, type fighting! This is the last time I will be giving this notice (thank god), please enjoy and review!_

* * *

><p><strong>Khai<strong>

"Like I've said a million time Miss Carra, my son is almost 19. He's sloppy, he's predictable, and there is no way he can escape the elite Equalist tracking squad", Bao said eagerly as if he wanted to show them their skills.

"But are you sure, is what I'm asking. He's been missing for almost three months and he's eluded most of the Equalist party, why are you still so confident?", the reporter asked again.

"Because, we have never tried. The Equalist party is focusing on the good of the people, and it will never come if these benders are still here", Bao assured her.

I laid in my bed disgusted, my own father was talking such bullshit over the T.V it almost made me want to smash it. I was upset over the date with Kya, my night had been ruined over the sight of his dead friend Bozu. However I didn't want to make a big deal to Kya about it and ruin her night as well. _Dammit, why would we wonder onto a fishing pier? There's nothing romantic about fish!_. My head ached from his many thoughts that crammed into my head.

When I had returned home that night he had slept for awhile, the very next day he went down to Chief (Lyn) Bei-Fongs to ask where he could find Bozu's body to pay his respects. After I had returned home, he had noticed that Ruan and John were missing, however I had noticed that his own refrigerator had been crammed with random food that he had never eaten before. Along with a drink that had a vile taste of dish soap.

After checking all the useless junk in his room. I jumped into bed and he turned on the T.V, to my surprise my father, having an interview in front of the Kyoshi Way capitol building. Sadly however it had been fully consumed by Equalists.

"Well I'm glad we can all say it's going to be perfectly safe city, once we know that all the benders are gone", she said very happily.

"Oh yes, and trust me when I say you won't have to wait much longer. Amon has a something very special in mind to save these people from bending tyranny, but for now it remains confidential", Bao said uttering a quick, deep laugh.

"And I can proudly say that we are all so eager.. you know expect for those benders..", she paused and both of them laughed, "But Bao tell me about what happened with your ranso-",

"Bullshit! All of it!", I said shutting off the T.V. I knew my father was faking everything. His true intentions of peace, his attitude, and I bet he had no idea what Amon was doing, he was just a pawn. The sound of my father disrespecting me over the television infuriated me, I sighed heavily trying to relieve myself of my headache. My mind wandered on what I would have to do when the time came I had to face my father and would i then be to late?

Who knew when the full Equalist takeover began but we could only hope for Avatar Korra's assistance when it comes down to our last battle.

I had been on many missions with Porter, rescue and ransom missions mostly. Some which I had blocked completely from my mind. I try so hard to erase those evil thoughts but I can feel them, clouding my mind with sinister idea's. I have grown darker.

"Up the fucking stairs go!", a voice that I had been familiarized with echoed outside my apartment. I turned my head towards the door, my curiosity had been intrigued.

"He's not breathing, get a respirator on him now!"

"It's not dust Porter, it's his skin! He's badly burned!"

"Dammit Dayton, just do it!"

* * *

><p><strong>Khai's personal thoughts<br>**

Dayton? A name I had only heard once. He had been part of John's team of "assassins" as they called themselves, however how they all got here.. well he still never told me. All that he told me only made things in my world a lot more painful. He had said that he and his group weren't the only ones here. A man by the name of Robertson and his Republican Guards had entered this world not to long ago. Shortly after he was being chased by the assassins, headed by John. That I know of.

On our way back from a mission John told us a story about Robertson. I wanted to hear it, about why he was tracking him but the story had already made my blood froze. He had corrupted John's world, destroyed his life, and murdered the one he truly loved. John had told me much about Jordan, expect that she was his true love. On the night of returning from one of our regular scouting missions, John's chilling tale had scared itself into our brains.

It wasn't his fault, no not at all, it was our curiosity that led us to who we are today. It had been Ruan, and I that had sat in my room and we had been listening. Another member by the name of Vlad had been listening at the door, his head had been down, he had already heard this story before. At one point he had left during the middle of the story, disgusted by the events that occurred.

As John was about to tell what had happened to Jordan, Dayton, the groups sniper or long range specialist had entered. _"You don't have to say Porter, this is none of their concern"_, he said. They had obviously been like brothers but he was more quiet then the other members I had met. John didn't stop his story but Dayton had left the room.

John had told us how Jordan was raped and then shot by a man named Robertson who had entered our world as had he did. The way that he had inflicted pain into him and his world had been unforgivable. He had turned one another people each other, creating nothing but pure violence just to get to power. His succession led to the Republican Guard or his personal followers. John had followed his assassins who believed in Preditorian Communism, I had know Idea what any of this was and I couldn't bare to ask John to say any more.

After a long silence John stood up, his head hung low but not in shame but in his own person prayers towards her, and how he will do everything in his power to stop Robertson. Robertson was a man of pure evil, and I couldn't help but to compare him to Amon or my father but what John had been feeling was different. He had started dating Korra but I couldn't help but wonder how he actually felt. I felt guilty about making John tell us of his pain

* * *

><p><strong>Reality<strong>

I nearly knocked down my door. My shoulder collided with the wood, sending it wide open but I wish I didn't. My heart had stopped and my vein grew chill. I could see Dayton and Vlad hauling in Ruan , who had been on a stretcher and had been severely burnt. My hearing had been dulled, everything felt like it had been going so slow, seeing my best friend like that had crushed me.

They had been yelling at one another as they pulled Ruan into his own room. His skin had almost looked shredded, his eyes had been shut, and it was almost if I saw smoke and ash rise from his mouth. I had even seen John running towards me.

"Khai! Khai! Dammit Khai get your fucking head out of the clouds, we need you to stay back!". I shook my head back into reality, had noticing I had actually been trying to push through into his room.

"John..w-what..", I had been to stunned with fear to say a word.

"Stay back Khai, you'd just get in the way", Vlad had said at the doorway of Ruan's room. Anger had begun to build, and I grasped john's shirt.

"What the fuck happened! Is he alive!", I shouted. Vlad and Dayton had been Ruan's room.

"Khai please, we don't -"

"No dammit Porter what the fuck happened!", Now I had been trying to push myself into the room.

"Khai calm down and listen!"

"NO! My friend could be dead and I need to know what the hell happened to him!", I slammed my shoulder into the door, it swung open. My anger had gotten the best of me, and I had no idea what I was doing.

Time seemed to had froze, my stomach turned violently seeing my friend lying nearly incinerated and on his bed. Other members of John's assassins, one I hadn't even met had already been prepping him room, like John had known this would happen. A man in a medics outfit stormed up to me pushing his hand onto my chest. It wasn't until I felt John's hand on my shoulder pulling me back, when I officially gave in.

"Hey, we need you out of here!", the man ordered. An icy pain ran through my head, I grievously stepped back, having the medic slam the door into my face and all went quiet. I turned to John, with a horrific expression of pain on my face. My face went pale as I slowly stumbled back to my room.

"Look Khai, his heart is still beating but for right now we everyone to remain calm, especially you", John assured me. I didn't say anything, I didn't even acknowledge him. John followed into my room, stopped me from shutting the door. The door hit his shoe, blocking me from closing it. My head hung low but I looked up at him, my eyes turned blood red.

"Khai, Ruan is hanging by a thread and we need you to stay out of the way for right now. Promise me you won't do anything stupid that will involve us?", John said. My bloodshot eyes met his, my anger was strained, and hated began to pour.

"Khai please-"

"Fine"

"I know what your feeling right now, and-"

"Who did it?", I said trying to hold back my anger.

* * *

><p>John contemplated whether or not to tell me, "I'll tell you everything once we know Ruan's-"<p>

"WHO!"

John looked back and forth between Khai and Ruan's apartment, he knew that they needed him in there. He took his foot away from the door.

"It was a pridesmen by the name of Mao and-"

That was all the information I needed, I slammed the door shut, and walked over to my dresser. I had heard bits and pieces about The Pride, I had three of them along time ago when they were chasing Ruan and I. Ruan suddenly caught on to their plans but instead they attacked us, I had assumed they died from our little incident from when I first met Porter.

I had heard over the television that The Pride had killed off the Equalist Vp and WLP Vp. It had been a huge event when I told John, I could see that he had been shocked a little but he hoped not to get involved with a petty "gang" such as them. What was a mystery to me was that if they were bender supremacists, why would they kill someone who supported them? Unless he had turned against them somehow? However to pull off a couple of stunts like that is incredible! Not to mention the details the reporters were suppose to tell, who knows what secrets they were hiding! Like how many were in that gang.. or clan.

Other then that information I knew already, The Pride remained a mystery to me but I know knew about a fourth one called Mao. They would pay in blood for what they did. My hands dug through my dresser, under all my shirts on the top drawer I took out my sword. It was a curved sabre, innovated by John so that each side was bladed. It had a slight curve, but it had been able to slash and cut through a pig carcass in one swing. I pulled out the hidden sheathe and through it onto my bed.

Admiring the silver shine that gleamed off my blade I knew that it would do the trick. My facial expression didn't change, it had hate written all over it. Someone tonight will die by my blade, the edge of my blade aimed towards Mao's heart. The only hard part was trying to find him, but if he attacked Ruan here in this district he couldn't be far. My blood boiled and an extreme pain ran through my veins but it only encouraged me to go through with my plan.

I slightly opened my door, only one of my eyes peering through the crack of light which showed the stairs leading down towards Ruan's apartment. Nobody was in sight, I heard many voices coming from Ruan's room. I walked out of my room, entering the courtyard of scrap and storage. The louder the voices got it only frightened me more, I could only pray for his safety.

That and find and kill Mao of The Pride

* * *

><p><strong>The Pride<strong> **Sanctuary**

Kessen laughed widely, "Yes! Yes! two pairs of fours I win again!", he slapped down his hand revealing two pairs of fours. Depressed moaning went around the table.

"Fuck, my money! What did I continue playing?"

"How the hell am I suppose to eat tonight? I'm not getting any free food, grilled with saliva from that shitty bartender!"

"Son of a bitch, Kessen you cheater!"

Monna, Chen, and Kenten were forced to put all bets into the middle, or "the pot" in this case. The sound of metal coins (yuans) bounced and clicked together as they were thrown into the pot. Kessen smiled, his tattoo covered arms reaching across the table to collect his winnings. Putting his winning change in his pocket he continued to fold up the yuans and put them into his wallet.

"Relax, you'll be able to win it all back", Kessen assured them, "But your going to need money to play!", Kessen said again laughing as if this was a huge scam. Monna was the first to stand up, violently freezing the cards in her hands. She began to walk away.

"Not on your life asshole", she said tossing the frozen cards into the pot, they shattered instantly. Chen depressingly counted the change he had left over, they clicked together in his dirty hands. "Yea I'm out to", he said grievously. He stood up and walked over to the bar. Kessen frowned at them and shook his head with a sinister smile.

"How bout you Kenten? I bet you would like a chance to win all this back. But then again your loaded, so why bother!", Kessen said mocking him.

Kenten sighed, rubbing the sweat off his forehead, "No"

"What? C'mon Kenten you can't be serious?"

"I am serious, now shut up and leave me alone", Kenten rubbed him face with his hands and flicked his cards onto the table. As Kenten got up so did Kessen blocking his way from wherever he had been going. Kenten looked down at him annoyed, even though Kenten was smaller then him, he was still a big pain.

"Your still pissed aren't you?", Kessen said with a slight grin.

"Fuck off, Kessen", Kenten replied trying to push him aside but Kessen wouldn't give.

"Look man, we got beat, it's over, forget about it! Or did you forget about our abilities?", Kessen said. Kessen had been a little right, Kenten, Kessen, and Sento all had the ability to use sand to dive underground and travel at massive speed to anywhere they desired. However once Kenten knew they had lost to a couple of young adults he had been pissed. They weren't even benders yet they still beat them, not to mention nearly destroy his ankle.

"Yes Kessen we got our asses kicked but that doesn't mean we just sit here and pretend everything's fine! It's not, we're elite sand benders and if you want to actually become strong enough to overpower some fucking kids, at least attempt to show some initiative by training harder! Unlike you Sento isn't drowning himself in alcohol like you and Chen always do, you both are a waste of this clan!", Kenten shouted.

He pushed passed Kessen, without letting him say a word. He entered his room and slammed the door shut. Kessen sighed heavily, maybe he did need to train harder. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around, Chen had been standing behind him the whole time holding a glass of gin. Kessen frowned angrily.

"Worst fucking time ever Chen!", he took the glass and smashed it on the ground. Bits and pieces of glass were sent flying in every direction, not to mention the gin that laid soaking in between the tiles on the ground. He left without hearing Chen's response.

Kessen walked on throughout the halls of the sanctuary. He had never explored the halls, he had spent most of his time above ground blaming the Equalists on events he caused or drank himself to near death.

"Kessen", an ominous voice called out to him behind him. He quickly turned around, down the hall a dark character stood. Kessen squinted his eyes but couldn't make out any detail of him. The halls hand been lit up by lights but still he could not see the man's face, it was as if he was talking to a shadow. It stood their all dark, it was if see was completely intangible. In fact Kessen could see right through him!

"A ghost?", Kessen laughed at the thought and drew up to balls of sand. Diving them out into rod shaped weapons, almost like spears. "Alright, I don't know who you are but I'll send you back to the spirit world you demon!". His bending went mad, his spears converted back into normal sand and flew around smashing into the walls and eventually pinning him against the cold, damp concrete.

Kessen cried out in short pain, "W-what ability do you have that allows you to control others bending? A-are .. you a sand bender to?", the thing let out a short but evil laugh. He could feel his own sand grasp against his neck, compressing him harder around the throat. Every time his heart beat, it was harder for him to breathe, Kessen couldn't help but to feel terrified.

The thing hovered over, it didn't need to walk. Kessen desperately gasped for air, "W-who...are.. y-you?", he managed to sputter out. His bending hand somehow been completely blocked. How? Nobody had touched him. It hovered over to him, he could now make out the details. It's eyes sunken in but red as blood, it's teeth sharp enough to penetrate metal. an aura of darkness surrounded it and with every breathe it took sent chills down Kessen's spine.

"I have a mission for you.. and your reward will be your life!"


	19. The Hunt for Vengeance Pt 1

_Authors Note: Hey everybody, sorry about that random line in the last chapter, it meant nothing! Just a typo._ _Well here is the first part of a two part chapter for ya, enjoy as always and please review!_

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><p><strong>Khai<strong>

My thoughts never wandered off, even when I wasn't with Ruan. He was my friend, my only friend I could call a brother these days. It was nice to have John around but I still have my questions about him, even if he calls them "Honorable Intentions" like where he exactly came from. I had been walking for a good half an hour, passing the coffee shop and other stores that past by. District 4 wasn't really all that great, it was like all the other districts except nothing ever happened. There were Stores and shops, markets and stalls, and the park. The Pier, which had been ruined for me by the death of another acquaintance called Bozu, was the place where a lot of people loved to hang out.

My sheathed sword had been on my back, these days you see a lot of people carrying heavy weapons. I had just blended in with the others, hiding the fact that my true intention was blood. Men wearing suits had seemed like professional business men. However carrying around swords, crossbows, and halberds didn't really seem to be very inviting to each other.

Everyone was very nervous these days, the fear of a revolution from the Equalist party was scared in everyone's mind. The slaughter of the WLP didn't seem to bother the other district but here in mine it seemed like everyone was in a hurry, like it had already begun.

The Unknown area I had been held massive amounts of people but most of them crowded around each other, a good thing if you can't trust anybody else. The sky was grey and clouded, making everything else look like a graveyard. Restaurants paralleled one another but few had people. _Great a thousand people and I'm searching for one guy...dammit, I didn't even ask John what he looked like_, I thought.

I lowered my head trying no to get to noticed, it wasn't like I was being hunted or anything, right? I had come to the conclusion that maybe those three sand benders had survived and were coming back for Ruan, or maybe anyone who didn't believe in what they wanted. I didn't know their true intentions but anyone who would force themselves onto others politically like this, couldn't be good.

My hand grazed the handle of my blade, it hadn't been anything fancy it had thin leather straps around it giving you a better grip for slashing but I knew I wasn't a wiley swordsmen. I walked on, the sound of everyone's feet hitting the sidewalk sounded like rain. I rounded a corner of a bakery that looked like it could've been closed for years, the dark windows and the boarded up doors gave it an ominous look.

The streets seem to be layered with dust, along with the grey sky made this street so gloomy no artist would want to paint it. Ever since Republic City was built, a romanticism era sort of appeared where it inspired painters to paints the peace and prosperity that crossed every street, it was all a joke to me.

Down the street a small group of about eight surrounded a man, standing on a wooden box.

"Grab your friends, your family, you belongings and get out of town! The Equalists are coming and they're going to kill us all!", He proclaimed. I sighed, we have enough chaos as it is and know we have town criers? The man continued throwing up his arms dramatically in the air as if he was pulling the strings on a puppet. He looked around his mid 60's, he wore a torn apron and almost looked like he had no shoes. He wore an old shirt, stained and torn beyond repair. Dust lay upon his shoulders, well I hope at least it was dust.

"You'll all end up like me! No job, money or family, I was to late but my last wish before I part is to help all of you! The Equalists did this to me, they're the ones to blame!", he continued. His audience gasped and murmured amongst themselves. It was funny really, here they were listening to this guy and yet their still to nervous to look speak to one another like a group.

I walked up behind a man listening to the old man's ranting, "He's loosing more money by standing here yelling at us..", he said to himself. I couldn't help but to agree with him and couldn't help grin, "Guys like him give a bad name for the WLP", I said shaking my head.

The man turned around, his eyes met mine and he had this expression like I had just cursed his family. He looked around trembling in fear, finally he started to back out of the crowd. I looked at him curiously, unknown what I had said that might've offended him. He looked back at me.

"Hey look buddy, I don't want trouble just leave me alone okay?"

"What? I was agreeing with you"

"Whatever man, just leave me be, you don't just go making fun little chit-chats with people these days, now go away", he turned and started walking at a fast pace.

The dust fell onto his old black derby hat. This was crazy! People are to afraid to talk to one another because they can't say ten words without the person next to them ratting them out as "Equalist Spies". I hadn't even insulted the man and he acted like I was going to arrest him. I walked past the crier, however it had only taken me bout 30 steps to find myself in an even worse situation. A man in a courtyard of a restaurant was on his knees and crying, begging for his life while the customers had been watching in a semi circle formation.

The shop keeper, was a big man around his early 50's. He was bald, he had a big fat mustache that rested below his noes, wearing his grease stained apron, and looking down the sights of a bran new 3 shot crossbow aiming directly at the pleading man. I stood on the outside corner of the restaurant, I didn't want to get involved with something like this. If a man got angry with me agreeing with him, this guy could probably put three bolts into my chest for just saying "Now hold on", I continued to watch the large man, sweat dripping onto his crossbow.

"You coming into my fine establishment and just insult me like that? How dare you, you Equalist filth!", the owner said wrapping his finger around the trigger.

"I'm not an Equalist I sell real estate, you gotta believe me!", he face turned green as if he was going to puke.

"Shut up! I see so many of you damned Equalists it's not even funny, it's sick your a disgrace to Republic City and the avatar!", he face was redder then the sauce stain on his apron. I could see customers getting very nervous, quietly talking back and forth between one another.

"This is one of the only restaurants that actually gets business why the hell would I have someone like you come and take that away from me! Do you think I'm stupid, you Equalist trash?", he shouted. I felt guilty about watching this but this was not my place to get involved. I looked up into the skies, there wasn't any police airships around, a shame.

"P-please sir, you must believe me I-I sell houses", it was like watching two waterfalls pour out of his eyes, he was choking on his words and couldn't say much that would save his life. "My brief c-case, it shows my work, I assure you go right ahead. Anything to s-save my life!", the salesmen said.

The owner looked curiously at the brown tattered briefcase, that sat on the table. He looked over to one of his employees, nudging his head over in the direction of the briefcase signalling him to get it. He was skinny, wore the same things as the owner minus the apron. Two clicks could be heard as he unlocked the worn briefcase, scrambling through it he raised what seemed to be an employer card.

"Tao Forwin, real estate agent of District 4..Yangchen distinct.. blah, blah, blah. Yep everything he says is true", the employee said, shutting the briefcase.

A huge sign relief came across the agents face. He began to stand up, brushing all the dirt off his knee's from where he had been kneeling. He looked up at the store owner who had begun to lower the crossbow, his face was bright red, his eyes wet, and heart raced. Everything seemed fine until one of the customers stepped out.

"Wait a minute I heard that man, right over there, say he wishes for Equalism!", tensions begun to raise. The owner immediately shot back up their eyes dead locked. The salesmen Tao put his hands in the air, "Now wait a minute, Equality and Equalism are to diff", Tao had been silenced.

Three bolts had been shot off, they plunged themselves into Tao, one visible all the way through. Tao didn't make a sound, blood streamed from his mouth and from his suit, he fell to his knee's then crumpled onto the ground dead. "No damned Equalist spy is coming after my business!", he shouted before returning to his kitchen. I was shocked, not only by the killing that probably will go unnoticed but the fact that people could sit and still eat with a corpse laying there, and an innocent one at that.

I looked down at the bleeding man, I should've helped him but now it's over, and my original plans continue.

* * *

><p><strong>Kessen<strong>

Releasing his grip, the sand became shifty and loose. The curator of the Hall of Past Hero's avatar museum fell onto the tiled floor. Kessen's body ached, in fact it felt like two people had been inside one body, well that's because there was. He shared everything with the spirit that inhabited him, eyes, mouth, nose, limbs, everything was shared.

Kessen brought down his hands, the sand smashed apart the display case. Kessen dropped down pushing his hands through loose sand and scrolls that once filled the display case.

_Where is it!, the spirit demanded.  
><em>

"I don't know I'm looking, I'm looking!", Kessen shouted back at the spirit. It was if he had been talking to himself, there was nobody around, they were all dead. The curator had been last to go. Kessen swiped his arms heavily, creating almost a sand wave to crushed any kind of display or book self in his path. Kessen wore a gourd on his back, filled to the brim with sand, just in case he went somewhere where he couldn't bring up sand.

_Might I remind you, your life is on the line!_

"Fuck off, I've never been possessed before!", Kessen twitched and scratched all over his body. If Kessen had done something wrong the spirit inside him would tear at his muscles, creating a pain far worse then a charlie horse or a sword going through your chest. He searched throughout the Hall of Aang, each hall had been designed for a certain avatar.

Scrambling through old scrolls, he had found one looking similar to what he had been looking for. He unravel it revealing a women water bending. She had been a traditional bender wearing old style clothing from the water tribe. Kessen admired her, she was beautiful. she had longs blonde hair, and blue eyes. It had been an old scroll teaching how to do basic styles of water bending. Then the spirit took over.

Kessen shouted as the pain of the evil spirit took over his body. Kessen's eyes sunk in and turned a blood red color, a black aura emitted from his shoulders until it surrounding his whole body.

"Finally! You couldn't do it so I guess I must do so, your a worthless bender!", The spirit said. He let out an ear bleeding screech that shattered whatever glass was left in the room. The spirit in Kessen's body walked out and searched for another room.

_Like I said, you damned demon, I can't control myself when I'm possessed like that!, Kessen shouted_

"Stop complaining mortal or I completely take your body for mine own!", It said. It approached two fully locked doors and viciously smiled. He roared send out a deadly stream of energy, completely destroying the doors. Before the spirit stopped he clenched his stomach, which erupted in pain. He felt nauseous, his world started to blur and a great headache had come over him.

"Damn your drinking habits", it said slowly making it's way into the chamber. The spirit caught himself on the wall, using the strength of the black aura to bury his finger within the cement.

_Give me back my body and we'll have nothing to worry about, I could use a drink, he said in an arrogant tone.  
><em>

"Shut up, Kessen!", the spirit said. He walked down flights of stairs, holding his stomach and trying not to vomit. It took him awhile to get to the bottom, which revealed to be nothing but old crates and shipment logs. _Your going to search through all these?_

"Don't be stupid! You don't know my abilities, and I sense it's not here!", The spirit said out of rage, he summoned sand from his gourd crushing box after box in quick improvement of his arms. "Dammit it's not here!", the spirits rage made Kessen's blood boil.

_Hey, let's calm down a bit alright, I'm not so sure what type of spirit you are but you anger is really damaging my body. Which by the way I need back..._

"SHUT UP KESSEN!", although he was right. He was loosing his power to regain control of Kessen's body but he didn't dare let Kessen know that. "Fine, you prick have your pathetic body back! However check that shipping log first, it might give me some insight on where this damn scroll", The spirit ordered. The pain came across Kessen's body once more, his eyes grew back to normal size, the black aura that once surrounded him had faded away, and the power of the evil spirit was once again inside Kessen.

"Ah much better, I can feel my arms", Kessen said.

_Just check the damn log!_

"Fine you, aggressive son of a bitch...", Kessen said feeling relieved. The spirit didn't want to waste energy on attacking Kessen's body, he needed energy but once he got that he would be immortal. Kessen flipped through pages on the shipment log, wood chippings from the destroyed crates were everywhere, thanks to that demon. Kessen's eye was caught on the exact scroll they needed, The Scroll of Purging. A huge smile came across Kessen's face when he figured out its location.

_You've got to be fucking kidding me..._

* * *

><p><strong>The Fainted Dragon Bar <strong>

The rat and termite infested bar stood on the edge of district 4 and next to the border that surrounded Republic City. It looked hideous but how it managed to attract the scum that walked on the streets made no sense. It was one of those places where if you needed a stiff drink without questioning it's atmosphere, well there it was.

Kessen walked into the repulsive bar, it had only had two people in it, not including the bartender who looked like he could pass out any minute. Kessen's brown robes blew in the gust of air the pushed itself out the door, as if it was trying to find a better place. The tables were old, some rotten, and other crawling with termites. Torn clothes had covered the thick layer of dust on the table, which showed how much they cared.

Kessen didn't care, the gourd on his back had been weighing him down. Chen had suggested doing something where he could both carry a weapon that helps in any situation and still gives you a good workout. At first he suggested a kanabo, a giant club the held metal studs around it creating an even devastating impact, a swinging weapon.

Kessen declined due to his potential hatred of swords, he said it would make him forget about his real bending abilities. After Kessen ordered his gin, he sat down at a leather booth, which had been torn and bitten by rats. He didn't care he needed a drink and that's why he was here, and that's probably why the bar hadn't gone out of business..

He sat the large gourd of sand on the other side of the booth, it was a tan color and tiny cracks had made their way across the bottom but barley seen from the human eye. It had several markings on it, weather it was painted red lines or faded symbols of past clan and gangs, they were there to stay. He had noticed one marking he had apparently missed when he first got the gourd. A grey skull with a black sword going down the middle shown on an empty spot on the gourd which ahd no markings near it.

Kessen examined it, curious at first but lost interest as the bartender brought him his drink. The bartender's fat meaty arm reached across the table, setting down the drink. It was in a foggy chipped glass that burned as it went down. Kessen's taste buds had been singed so many times by the drink he never really complained about how the glass made it taste like shit, the glass was barley cold.

_Put up your hood mortal_

"Uh, alright..", Kessen said confused as his brown hood covered his dirty hair. Sand bits fell as the hood brushed up against his hair, "So why am I doing this? There is about two people in here, and I think the bartender is having a heart attack..", Kessen said looking at the man who had been clutching his heart.

_Idiot, people will think your crazy if you seen talking to yourself!_

"I'm touched didn't think you cared"

_Shut up, try not to get to intoxicated, you stubborn drunk. Let I remind you we're on a mission_

Kessen looked around all the people he could see was a half passed out man, the bartender, and a man who looked like he was in his very early twenties. Kessen caught him looking at him twice, he had been drinking the same drink and his eyes kept wandering over. Kessen pulled his hood, making sure nobody could see his mouth.

"Who would bring the Scroll of Purging to a shit hole like this?"

_Fool, the scroll is to valuable to be put in a museum, even with high, pathetic security_

"Sooo.. they bring it to a bar..?", Kessen's sarcasm made himself laugh, it had probably been the gin talking but the fact was right.

_Honestly I'm not so sure, I was summoned to retrieve it, I don't know much about where it is. I can feel the energy of it so that's why I could only feel a slight bit of energy back at the museum but it faded. Now I can feel some its getting stronger so wait here and try not to get drunk!_

Kessen didn't even acknowledged that last part, he reached for his glass when the demon stopped him. His hand had been frozen in place, Kessen couldn't move it at all, he couldn't even feel it. Kessen's eyes grew in horror as he saw his hand start deteriorate, it had been aging at an incredible fast rate becoming skinny and bonier. It lost it's color and became pale white it was nothing but skin and bone. Not even blood ran through his fingers.

Kessen quickly stood up in horror, attracting the bartender and the man in his early twenties. he sat back down and whispered to himself, "Fuck!, alright listen fine no more alcohol, I give!. Just give me back my hand!".

_Now you see our little agreement, I can control any part of you, If I wanted I could kill you!_

Kessen's hand regrew to normal size. It's color returned and he had full control over it. His heart had raced, now recognizing the power of the spirit that was inside him, he sighed in great relief. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a quick movement. The man had not taken a drink, in fact it looked like he had been waiting for something. All Kessen could make out was that he had brown hair and wore a thin black jacket. He sat with his arms crossed on the table, and an intense look in his eye.

A few more minutes past and still nothing changed. Kessen was getting impatient and so was the spirit. "Fuck it, this is a waste of time, let's go back to the museum and see if we forgot something..", Kessen said, throwing a couple yuans onto the table, it brought up dust into the air on impact.

_No, not the museum you idiot! Someones probably noticed the bodies and the police are probably all over it. Let around here we need that scroll or might I have to remind you of the stakes that are at play!_

Kessen stormed out of the bar, not even caring about the attention he drew. Nobody was near for him to hear him talking to the spirit. "Look I don't know what you are but I want some damn answers! Who summoned you and how the hell did you get into The Pride's sanctuary?", Kessen said.

He stood out in the street, no cars or people walked remotely close to him. He was in far view of another pier, their he could see people carrying box's to and from ships. Unaware of the volume of voice, the noise of a door shutting made him turn around. Kessen could plainly see the man in a black jacket, red undershirt, and dark jeans step out, holding a sword aimed at Kessen's throat.

He had a furious look in his eye which stunned Kessen but not out of fear but out of confusion of who he was. To him this was completely random, unless he was a bounty hunter here to collect the large bounty of The Pride. The man eyes pierced into his.

_The power his anger and rage, gives him is outstanding! This will be one hell of a fight._


	20. The Hunt for Vengeance Pt 2

_Authors Note: Hey guys, hope you like the second part of my fight scene with Khai and Kessen (possessed). I don't own LoK, Korra, or anything that you remember from the leaked episodes of Legends of Korra. I only own a computer, and I'm also telling you about a new story I'm writing about called Wasteland Rebels that takes place in Fallout New Vegas! Please enjoy as always and review both, thank you!_

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><p><strong>Khai and Possessed Kessen (All 3rd Person)<strong>

"You!"

"me?"

"You son of a bitch you nearly killed my best friend!", the grip on the sword cut deep into Khai's grip. It was almost like his own blood ran through the sword, as it pulled him close towards Kessen. Kessen stood across from Khai, confused on what the hell was going on, he had never seen this guy before. Was he a bounty hunter or had he known him from somewhere else? No, he had never seen him before.

"Do.. I know you?", Kessen asked oblivious just as the spirit inside him was.

_He's not important mortal, lets go!_, The spirits dark voice, echoed throughout his head.

Khai's whole body was shaking, he wanted blood for the attempted murder of Ruan.

"Not me personally, asshole. You nearly killed Ruan, and I don't even know if he's still alive! Either way if he lives, your not!", blisters started to form around Khai's hand, he had been holding the sword so tightly.

He looked down the blade of the sabre, it aimed directly at Kessen's neck, but he was going further preferably all the way through. The grey clouded skies started to depart and the sun had started to barley shine but enough to cause a beam of light to gleam down the silver blade.

"Listen prick, I don't know what the hell your talking about but if it's blood you want all you going to get it yours", Kessen said taking a few steps back, his arm reached back removing the lid of his gourd. There was no sand in sight, only a cement road, minor buildings, and the pier at the end of the road.

_NO! fool your just wasting time! we need that scroll!_, Kessen's hand clasped the sides of his head, the voice had been more painful as it spoke through thought.

"SHUT UP!, I will do what I want... so loud.. You have no control over me!, Kessen took a few steps back, still clasping his ears.

Khai looked around to see who he was talking to but saw no one. He stood confused but none of his anger had gone away, he was ready for anything. For now this guy just seemed like a lunatic. One thing that he knew was not to fight directly with a member of The Pride, they were deadly and unpredictable.

Kessen stood trembling, not of Khai but of the pain the spirit was causing him, "Shut up, shut up! so loud...so loud!", he shouted again his head was basically vibrating and the sweat on his forehead was visible. It was like they were already fighting except they had not even moved two feet.

_YOUR DUTY, SCROLL, GET THE SCROOLLL!_

"TO LOUD, TO DAMN LOUD!", Kessen had begun to go historical, he grew blood shot eyes, and a twisted smile set itself upon his face. Khai was incredibly cautious, he had flinched a few times when Kessen began to shout to himself. Khai was unaware that Kessen had been trying to resist the spirits full possession of Kessen's body.

"Look, I don't know what the hell your trying to pull but if this.."

Cut off by a loud, shrill screaming that could be heard miles away. Kessen's mouth had opened up and usual amount beyond the point of a normal humans. The sound blew out the windows of any shanty homes that were near by, sending them flying as tiny razors. Khai took a knee, his heart race a speed that felt like only the avatar could feel, his palm slapped one ear as his other hand clasped the sword even tighter, he was determined. A slight trickle of blood ran down his other ear, wiping it away with his shoulder, it left a red smudge across his cheek.

After the deafening scream Khai couldn't take this lunatic anymore, he found the energy in his hate and charged him. Kessen's head shook violently, blood dripping from his mouth. Khai could feel it all, his heart race! His blood pumping viciously! The exact moment of vengeance he wanted! and he plunged the sword deep into Kessen's chest. Blood spurted out of his chest like he had just popped a balloon. He could feel the sword exited through Kessen's backside, it had been a clean cut, as if he had cut through butter.

Khai panted hard, his hand still around the handle, his extra push from his hate had faded away. His grip nearly touched Kessen's chest, Khai's brown hating eyes locked onto Kessen's brown dazed eyes. He had no color anymore, his whole body went pale, and his mouth had already reverted to normal size when Khai made the connection.

No blood dripped down from Kessen's mouth and the bleeding from the chest had stopped. Khai, still trying to catch his breath, wondered how the hell he still stood.

_Fuck! Why won't he die!, _Khai thought as his twisted the blade around, shredding any organs or muscles that he had penetrated. He looked around Kessen, the blade had got a little sideways and made a good crack in his gourd, and sand started to pour out. Khai eyes grew as he starred in horror.

_Sand! Why would Mao need sand, if he was a fire bender.. unless_, Khai's thoughts were silenced by the sound of untranslatable mumbling.

"..., ..."

Kessen began to mumble to himself but Khai couldn't tell what it was. He was horrifically astonished that he could still talk, let alone even still be standing. He eyes looked back at his, violent breathing erupted from his nostrils, as if he was a bull. All he wanted was for Kessen to die but it was as if death had stopped all together.

"..., you", Kessen began to mumble again. "What?", Khai asked. Khai began to retract the blade but an unknown force had stopped it midway, sand had begun to make a small pile behind Kessen.

"I- I remember y- you...", Kessen had began to regain some of his strength, somehow. "You were that brat, who Kenten, S- Sento, and I w- were chasing in the pits"

Khai began to pull harder onto the blade, but it didn't come out. He wasn't going to let some guy take his only weapon, even if he should've been dead a long time ago. Kessen slowly began to hang his head until his chin touched the edge of the blade that had pierced him. He continued softly ..

"And..Ruan..Ah yes, he had found out... about our little, plans", Kessen took a few moments to take a few breaths, "Insolent brat!"

Khai stopped pulling, anger began to course in his blood, he smashed his fist into the side of Kessen's face sending him off balance and falling into the mound of sand that had once filled his gourd, which had been propping him up. Khai rubbed his knuckle, it had hurt way more then a regular punch had been. He looked down at Kessen, sitting in sand and Khai's sword in his chest but he still managed to breath. It was if he had ignored both pains.

_Impossible!_, Khai thought. "How the hell are you still alive!", Khai demanded. Kessen slowly began to lift his head. He expressionless pale eyes, starred at him until he began to smile, laughing in a deep hysterical way, his eyes grew darker and darker. They sunk into his head and turned a blood red color. Khai, nearly off balance watched in horror of the unforgettable change occurred on Kessen.

"What the fuck are you.."

Instantly Khai was thrown into the bar, a dark energy released from Kessen sent anything in its path flying. Khai's back smashed into the front rain gutters of the Fainted Dragon Bar. _Dammit, my back!__,_ Khai tried to get to his feet. He felt the trickle of dirty rain water fall onto his neck, slowly seeping onto his back. Khai struggled to lift his head to see Kessen He was stumbling back and forth as his tried to stand on his feet with the his sword still through his chest.

He hysterical laughter continued, Khai's could feel his blood turn to ice, shivers darted down his spine. Sweat ran down Khai's forehead, not from exhaustion but from anxiety, his heart pounded like drum and his eyes flickered uncontrollably. _Was this thing human, was this really what The Pride was made up of?_, Khai thoughts wandered as if his mind controlled him.

Kessen, the normal human sand bender had been erupt black smoke from his wound in the chest. Khai couldn't even imagine seeing something like this, it eased out as if Kessen was made up of it. It screamed uncontrollably, not from the demon but from Kessen trying to hold back the pain. The cloud of smoke covered Kessen as if acting like an extra layer of skin.

His eyes turned fully black, no pupils could be seen, and with a full twitch of his body, he snapped the steel blade in half. Sending the blade half flying into backwards behind Kessen and the handle part at the ground right in front of Khai. The gourd that had been on his back exploded, a wave of sand now covered the paved roadway and within second it start to shift.

"FREEDOM!", It shouted sending waves of sand flying in all direction. They flew out like blades, creating cracks and slits into anything it touched, "FINALLY, A HUMAN BODY TO CALL MY OWN, I AM IMMORTAL!", It had almost a demonic voice that seem to echo throughout the city.

_Shit, what have I gotten myself into,_ Khai thought getting to his feet, he took the broken handle part of the sword. Majority of the blade was broken and this half only contained about a foot of broken blade, this took the attention of the demon.

"Arduous insufficient little fuck aren't you?", It said cracking in it's neck. Khai wiped the sweat that had dripped onto his brow, he stood ready aiming the broken blade at Kessen's possessed body. It's dark eyes grew look at ominously, almost humored as if Khai's broken blade would do anything, and he was right. It's deep laugh angered Khai but it was only pulling Khai into his death. That's when the sand erupted, retracting behind Kessen it created a tsunami of sand, deafened by the sound of the spirits hysterical laughing.

'IT'S TIME TO DIE, MORTAL!", it said only to be stopped in his own tracks. A long, thick black wire, shot from nowhere struck right through Kessen. The demon looking horrified, starred angrily at Khai as if he had done it. Tugging frantically at the wire, the spirit could not free itself. Being who he was he could not feel pain, however possessing the body of a pridesmen, a human, he had been trapped in his own rebellious takeover. "Dammit!", it shouted pulling harder on the wire. It wasn't wire at all it had been a metal coil, stretching far through his body and exiting impaling itself in the ground.

Khai charged him again, devoted to cause it to bleed. His blood pumped furiously through his hands, but stopped. Instantly five more black coils instantly ran through his body, then four more. His scream was unbearable. Dropping the broken blade, Khai's hands clasped his ears trying to protect what was left of his eardrums.

"Stop! All of you your all under arrest, except for you.. Kessen of The Pride!" A booming voice sounded overhead and followed by it was a loud siren. Khai and the spirit looked up.

Instantly it all connected in Khai's mind, _He hadn't been Mao_, _but he had been apart of The Pride,_ Khai returned his attention to the sky, where was was left of the sun was being blocked off by a mass of metal._  
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Metal benders! The policemen of the WLP the patrolled all over the city, even those that had been populated by the Equalist party. However it was far more dangerous. A large airship overhead stood still casting a very large shadow upon the bar and the whole street. It was a giant metal blimp, if you didn't want to get technical. It had one large fin and engines on each side. On the sides of the blimp were where the metal benders stood and when they're ready to deploy, they jumped launching their metal coils to impact the street or buildings to gently lower them down.

Ten metal benders gently lowered themselves down. "Damn you! Your not involved in this!", The spirit said. The leading sergeant walked to Kessen, they had been the same height, standing proudly and strong in front of him. The spirit was coiled up, the metal going in and out of his body, he dark eyes store viciously into the sergeants who barley even saw him as he truly was. The demon growled, blowing hot furious air out his noes.

A slow grin appeared on his face and he calmly took out a brown holster from his pocket. The sand that rose above Kessen was already on the ground, lost of it's bending controller because the coils had struck each of his chi points, except for his head. The spirit violently yanked his head to the officers as if he was going to rip of his face with his razor sharp deep. Warm saliva dripped gradually from his mouth as if it were numb and he had no control.

Opening up the small brown holster six long black cigars sat evenly in a straight line, and the officer pulled one out. Putting the holster away he lit the cigar, releasing four rolls of smoke from his mouth. He puffed casually on his cigar as if he had been retired and on vacation. His eyes looked curiously at Kessen's evil eyes, he raised a brow.

"What in sam-hell are you and why aren't you dead, Kessen?", the officer said blowing smoke into Kessen's face. "How Dare YOU Mortal, YOUR BLOOD WILL REST UPON THE GROUND WHERE WE STAND!", the spirit shout moving about eagerly. The officer smirked, ignoring the insult. He attention turned to Khai who hadn't noticed two bending officers behind him.

"Him to..", he said puffing more on his cigar. Khai was shocked, before he could even blink the two officer already had him in handcuffs.

"What why me, I have done nothing wrong! In fact you should be thanking me for finding a member of The Pride!"

The officer laughed a bit, "Yes, and you obviously had things under control before we arrived. But in other news your under arrest for guilty of association!"

"Association? I was defending myself!", Khai protested.

"And I'm sure you would've been alive five more minutes before we showed up... And yes, association, civilians are not allowed to get into violent struggles out on the street, especially these days. Not to mention doing so with a top ten enemies of the city!

Khai tried to struggle but the policemen behind him helm him in place, hand on his shoulders and on his cuffed hands. The officer walked up to him, he bent down a little and met his eyes with Khai's, he squinted his. "You look familiar.. what is your name!", the officer demanded.

"Khai.."

"Son of Bao!.. As in the refugee son of that damned Equalist leader of Kyoshi Way?", The officers eyes flared, his face grew red now knowing that Khai was an Equalist.

"Please it's not what you think I'm not an.."

"Your a damn Equalist that's what you are! What a hoax, the D.L of Kyoshi's son "lost" and happened to be found in White Lotus territory! Your a spy! You'd be lucky if there ever will be a trail at all, in fact I'll make sure there won't be!", the officer face grew intense. He started to sweat from his forehead, giving off a horrendous odor.

"Please if you just allow me to explain, I.."

"Think about the medals I'll receive for exploiting the Equalists for their true intentions! The fame I'll receive, you know what.. to hell with the metals, I'll be getting promoted.. yes, yes I can see it now, I might even get a raise", the officer laughed joyfully at his false accusations. Rolls of smoke rapidly left his mouth as he walked back to Kessen who had been hanging his head, seeming to have fallen asleep..

"And as for you... dammit WAKE UP!", the officer slammed his fist onto the spirits head, he didn't even flinch.

"..., ..", the spirit began to mumble again..

"Err, excuse me?"

"MY MISSION, MY MISSION, I MUST HAVE THE SCROLL! BY THE NAME OF THE SPIRIT WORLD AND BY THE BLOOD OF THE AVATARS I'LL KILL YOU ALL!", the demon shrieked so loud, it's energy was sent through the metal coils. Individually they started to crack until one by one they began to burst. The officers jaw dropped, having the cigar drop into the sand where he stood. The demon could only rely on his supernatural powers since Kessen's chi paths had been destroyed by the coils.

He was free. It wasn't so much as a punch then it was a claw. The spirit jumped forward at the sergeant who had been taunting him and Khai, and in one swipe of his hand he had taken off most of the cheek on the officers face. The officer hollered in pain, clutching his cheek and trying to prevent the loss of blood. His teeth had and tendons connecting the jaw had either been removed from the attack or left in shreds.

"Stop Him!", an officers cried out. The policemen holding out their gloves launched more metal coils, fear running through each of the metal benders. The spirit caught one but had to sacrifice some of Kessen to get impaled. The demon laughed maniacally, for it felt no pain.

"Fuck it, this isn't worth it!", some officers began their retreat, drenched in sweat of their fear. They pulled off of their metal coils and ran down the road.

"Cowards! I'll m- make sure Sz- sz- Szen hears of th- this!", the sergeant said trying not to gag on his own blood. He looked up starring straight into the heart of evil. Instantly he was lifted into the air. The demon rose with him climbing ten feet into the air, his hand out with his palm up. "Five more minutes and you could have survived sergeant!" , the demon shouted.

He clenched his fist instantly throwing the officers neck back snapping it, he was dead before he could even said "ouch", his body thrown viciously onto the pavement. Blood trickled from his head, which had been cracked by the pavement. The other officers began to retreat as the blimp stayed hovering above, just in case the situation calmed itself.

"So much his promotion ey Khai?", The demon laughed wildly as it hovered above Khai. Khai felt useless, his hands were cuffed and his was wide open with no weapon. He gritted his teeth in irritation, bullets of sweat trickled down his neck, and a cold nauseous feeling entered his head. A blind force slammed Khai into the side of the bar, grunting in pain he tried to show no emotion to not give the demon a sense of accomplishment.

_Dammit, "_I'll kill you!", Khai shouted pinned against the wall. The spirit hovered down in front of Khai, gradually sliding his sharpened finger nails down the side of his face, he laughed and immediately slamming his fist into Khai's stomach. Khai gagged for air, he spat out a stream of saliva from point of impact. His air had been gone for a good six second before he could actually begin to breathe normally.

"Your to weak Khai, your a human.. a weak meat sack.. and a... a um.. fuck what's going on..", the spirit hovered back clutching both his stomach and his mouth.

His power weakened and Khai dropped to the ground. After regaining his balance he instantly grabbing the broken handle with the broken blade. The spirit dropped to the ground uncontrollably and vomited.

A large stream of vomit streamed out of his mouth, he dug his fingers into his stomach. Khai adverted his eyes in disgust, however he couldn't but find this amusing. He began to roar with laughter, despite his pain.

"What the fu- *vomits and gags* ck, is so funny, is damned human!", the spirit said angrily.

"Oh have you heard the saying Karma's a bitch? Well it's true and your caught in it", Khai said laughing again and again, he continued "You took the body of an alcoholic and your paying for it with his withdrawals, and now it's your power which is suffering!", Khai finally ended wiping tears of joy away. The spirit vomited again, leaving a brown stream to run through the cracks of the pavement.

"Damn *Stomach gurgles*.. you, I- I'll Kill * vomits*"

Khai had already charged him, he slammed his knee into the spirit's forehead. Even though he felt no pain, his fell backwards with his head slamming against the concrete. Even though he felt no pain, his power could still be drained, and Kessen's alcoholism was doing it for him. The spirit got up and sent out a blinding force at Khai. It hadn't been as powerful but he managed to keep is feet on the ground. He slid back, digging his shoes into the ground to hold his place.

"C'mon, I know you can do better!, Khai said taunting him. The spirit growled with rage, his energy searing throughout his body. As he began to attack he dropped to his knees, clutching his stomach. He panted hard and sweat poured from his face, seconds later he began to vomit again. His head hung as bits of vomit dripped from his mouth. He looked up just in time to have Khai's wrist around his throat. The demon struggled to break free but his power was almost drained. Khai grabbed the brown robes that once belonged to Kessen. Forcing the demon to his feet, Khai leaned by his left ear.

"Time to die..", Khai put all his energy into his final stand. His hate was back, pouring into his veins and all over his body, he felt invincible. He began to run, with Kessen's possessed body, using all of his last strength he ran across the street, using his body as a battering ram. He slammed it into the brick wall, that stood on the other side of the Fainted Dragon Bar, followed up with and crushing strike to the throat and ending with a knee to the solar plexus.

Khai was exhausted, he was burning up and a stream of sweat fell from his hair. The spirit fell down onto his stomach, vomiting outwards. Khai's anger and rage had left, his muscles tightened and his whole body was sore. He stepped back to see what had become of the spirit. The black aura that once surrounded his body had begun to fade, and the spirit began to separate from the body.

"I.. Hate.. You", Khai said, barley managing to talk he had been so tired. Kessen's eyes began to grow to it's full size and his teeth/fingernails began to dull. The spirit was fully separated, gently hovering over Kessen. It was completely intangible, Khai could see right through the dark figure.

It was weak it could barley move, and all the characteristics that it had when it possessed Kessen was now separated in a floating black mass, minus it's strength. Khai could tell it was having trouble regaining energy, his dark aura that once surrounded his was thinning and it needed to go back to it's own world to regain strength.

It smiled showing it's dagger-like teeth, it's blood red eyes dimmed, as it starred at Khai.. and it began to laugh or more like a chuckle.

"Khai... I won't forget you.. don't.. forget...ME!", before Khai could even respond, it slowly dissolved into nothing, in thin air. Khai looked at Kessen's dead body, he almost felt sorry for him, he was possessed, it was the demon making him look for a stupid scroll. However he was more pissed he never got to interrogate him for information of Mao.

Metal coils shot down from the police air ship, coiling up Khai he had no strength left to resist, they had been planning it all along. They recoiled Khai into the air.

And now he was going to be sentenced to death... he was an Equalist.


	21. Guilty of Association

_Authors Note: Hey everybody I'm on spring break.. well I was, but it gave me more time to create chapters. Please enjoy! Oh and I hope you enjoy the actually one hour episode of the actually show Avatar Legends of Korra which aired April 14th. Well if you watched it, I hoped you enjoyed it and just a reminder that this story was written before the actually show came out so I might've done things a little differently... I don't own LoK, or any of it's characters!  
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><p><strong>Khai (1st person)<strong>

I didn't know how long they kept me on that damned blimp, it felt like hours.. but why would they tell me? Why would they tell an Equalist "spy"? They kept me handcuffed and surrounded every second, none would leave my side. I couldn't even looked beyond five feet, metal benders surrounded had me close at hand.

"Khai! Khai!, over here! was your plan foiled as an spy for the Equalist party?", reporters pushed and shoved their way to get through to me, they were like animals. It was almost like a reverse mosh pit.

Bright lights, flashed in my eyes. So many flashes went off I began to see spots, beam after beam of light blasted through the metal bending blockade. I had no idea where I was or how any of these people came to know my name. I guess once the word of an Equalist in a WLP district got out, all hell brakes loose and it spreads like wildfire. I wasn't mad, well not at them anyway, my mind had still been throbbing on my recent encounter with.. what I expected to be a member of The Pride.

My brain hurt and I felt sick to my stomach but that could have been just be the lack of food talking, I hadn't eating in what seemed like days. My appetite grew less and less each passing second, which only made me feel weaker, my brother, my father, I need power if I'm going to defeat them. I need to get stronger.

"Over here! Over here!", more reporters began to shout and push through but my security had pushed harder.

"Is it true you killed a member of The Pride?"

"What's your motivation, besides being an Equalist?"

"Is it true your father is an Equalist district leader?"

I ignored them all, how my name got out will be my death, not to mention be a great excuse to have the Equalist party to invade the Yangchen district so they can come and "claim me", an funny and clever thought. They're so desperate for a damn motive. I couldn't tell where I was, except for in the city. The skyscrapers had given that perfectly away. However I had a hunch they were taking me to their department or maybe their police headquarters, I didn't know or even care for that matter, I had a goal and this was just a "minor" setback.

More blinding flashes of pierced through the police wall, there were probably hundreds, maybe thousands that surrounded me but hell if I new, I could barely see past five feet. This was only the beginning who knows when once we've past the reporters, what other might be waiting for me. The ones who hate me to, as they might be a bit more actuated to get their hands around my throat.

"Mr. Khai, what is your cause?"

Even with these guards, these reporters got on my nerves and buried deep under my skin. I didn't want to tell them anything to personal but I had to at least answer one.

"I don't-"

The metal bending police officers fist had struck the back of my head, sending a quick but still sharp pain and left a nice bruise. "Don't speak!", he ordered. I shook my head in disbelief, a world where your protective guard hurts you, it's a shame. Then again I had to keep reminding myself that I was the son of a infamous Equalist party leader so I shouldn't really expect tea and cookies.

The police stopped moving, they showed no emotion as the reporters tried to get a word from me, even though they knew I couldn't speak. They had the word austere written all over their face, they wouldn't move a muscle or let anyone move them. Standing as if they had been the skyscrapers of Republic City, and I still didn't know where I was but I could feel the ground begin to shake.

The ground rumbling seemed to shake everything, the looses gravel shifted and the shaking caused the small rocks to hop up and down. I lifted upon my toes to see if I can see anything but I felt a hand on my shoulder and was immediately pushed back down by the policemen.

"Stand Down!", he demanded still showing no emotion. _"Don't speak" and "Stand down"_,_ I'm lucky to have the right to breathe_, Khai thought. The ground shook even harder and faster now. A train, they had led me to a train station and not just the normal civilian transport train, this was the an armored transport unit or ATU. They had many types of these which can range from, tiny cars to aircraft. The civilian trained was of a rusty red color, while the ATU train was a pure metal plating. The ATU's had entered Republic City, four years after it was built to fend off anyone still convinced their bending was superior.

The train ATU brought a gust of wind as it entered the station, it blew papers around and into the face of anyone who stood in their way. Khai had an eye for the ATU, Bao had bragged about how he felt safe in it, it was a massive machine, covered many time with metal plating. It was the strongest thing in the city, not even Mao could have blown apart its steel complexity.

"Move!", the officer said. He slamming his palm onto my shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah", I said.

"Quiet, don't speak!", he replied.

_I can't even respond? Dammit they're harsh, can I sneeze or cough? What if I have to use the bathroom?, _my mind wondered off into many subjects. As I stepped aboard the massive hunk of metal, I was met by a man who seemed to be.. very involved in his job. He was wearing a blue blazer with his collar flipped upwards. He wore dark glasses that seemed to swallow his eyes and a typical security hat.

"You gettin' on or what?", he spoke with a very deep voice.

"Kinda don't have a choice now do I?", I said. He didn't even crack a grin he showed no emotion, the dark glasses blocking any sort of emotional perception. Another pain shot into the back of my skull as the officer hit me.

"Be Quiet! Get aboard now!", he ordered.

I got on board, the inside of the ATU seemed absolutely massive, much bigger then it did on the outside but definitely not as luxurious as I took it from my father. I sat on a cold metal bench with my cuffed hand on my lap. The air was thick and cold, it was like a prison on wheels. There were no windows, so for all I knew I could be going out of the city but I just couldn't assume that. Goosebumps grew on my arms, I shivered heavily and I could almost see my breath. I was on a journey to hell.

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><p><strong>Police Headquarters<br>**

I couldn't tell which was worse, the ice cold temperature or the "personal bodyguards" the hit me every time I make sudden movements. I could barley blink without having someone around my throat with a combat knife, threatening me not to move. The metal table sent a stinging icy feeling through my arms and the chair's temperature had already frozen me to its seat.

Four policemen stood at each corner of the interrogation room, however I couldn't help but to think the rest of the army stood on the other side of the door. I couldn't see anything out the window, since it was semi transparent. I couldn't keep my eyes off that window, other the other side was my fate. The other officers plotting what would become of me, hanging, burning in oil, or just shot with arrows, I just wanted to know how would I go out.

I waited a couple more minutes in what seem to be the opposite of what hell was suppose to be like, that was until Captain Sven entered into the room and then the whole room felt like a sauna. He wore metal armor, the same as all the other officers, except a different badge. His grey officers hat, held his rank of captain, which showed again on his left shoulder. He was a strong built man, his position of a captain suited him really well. However his personality towards me was a little unorthodox.

He came in quietly at first but the impressions of an ill mannered man spoke for itself. He slapped down some files onto the desk which he had been carrying when he entered and casts a blank "Why the fuck am I here right now" look, directly onto me.

"Disorderly conduct, disruption of the peace, aiding and abetting a top wanted criminal, and mild destruction, boy who the hell do you think you are?", Sven said casting that same look from his eye. I swallowed what shame I had in my throat, this was completely unnecessary and embarrassing.

"Well first of all, sir, I never actually aided.."

"Enough! You were seen with Kessen and talking to him, as far as we know, it was just a deal gone bad. What I want to know is what you were really after. What was your motive to aid this criminal when you specifically knew you were in WLP territory?", he interrupted.

"Look! I wasn't planning anything with him, he nearly killed my best friend and I don't even know if he's still alive. I went down to find him, I had suspicions of him at in a dirty little pub, and we fought, that's it!", I wanted to jump up so bad, my legs were tingling. However I had to watch myself around this guards.

He smirked, pacing slowly around the table he had a very distasteful look in his eye. I couldn't turn around or else the guards would probably tackled me for something as crazy as arson or something else that didn't make sense. He stopped on his side of the table and looked at me, beginning to chuckle.

"Something funny?", I asked. Sven pulled out his chair and sat down, folding his hands around the folder that contained some personal files. "Not really, things are irritating, like having some fucked up Equalist in our city. So I'm going to ask you again, what are you doing here!", his voice strained, by the look in his eye he wanted to see my blood on the ground.

Honestly thought I didn't know what to say, it was Porter who had brought me here. However I vaguely remember something about Chief Bei Fong setting us up here, maybe she could help.

"I want to speak to Chief Bei Fong", I asked politely. No need to make this guy hate me any more then he already does. He raised a brow, he acted like he was surprised I even knew who she was. He sat back in his chair, leaning on the back two legs and rocking himself back and forth.

"I'm just as important as the chief boy, anything she needs to know I can know", he said.

I was stressed. I could feel my skin crawling with irritation, and is was if my spine itself was rattling it was so cold. I exhaustively slapped my arms onto the cold metal table, what other choice did I have.

"She helped us get here and..", I stopped frozen in fear. "US", I had risked everybody, Ruan and John. I know John probably could take on the whole republic army if he wanted to but I didn't want to make him sound like an Equalist to have more shit on his plate.

"Us?", Captain Sven mimicked.

"It was nothing, I just.. stuttered, nothing of interest", I quickly said. I bit down hard on my tongue, so I didn't give away anything else. Captain Sven started to laugh.

"None of my interest? Boy, internal affairs is my whole damn interest! Just because you come in here and slip up, you think you can just get away with it by saying "oops"? Why the hell do you think we keep it so damn cold in here, if we don't get to ya, the temperature definitely will!", Sven said laughing his head off.

So that why it was cold, a tactic in order to make an enemy feel uncomfortable so they make a mistake, very clever. "You must be out of your damn mind if you think you think you can just walk out of here Equalist filth! Now stop wasting my time, and tell me how many more of a ya'?", Captain Sven asked. I didn't respond right away, which caused him to lean in closer to me, his muddy eyes sank into mine.

"C'mon now, we don't have all day. Your lucky I do report you to Colonel Chang, otherwise you'd be on the ground in tears", Sven said uttering a short deep laugh. I smiled sinisterly, his teeth were of a smoker breathe yellow. His gums had been corroding with gingivitis but somehow he ignored the pain. However one thing didn't sit still with me, _Colonel Chang?_ _Why the hell would he need __report to a military colonel, didn't he work for the police?_, I wondered.

"Colonel Chang?", I asked. Sven was quickly catching on to his mistake, he slowly and calmly leaned back in his chair, acting like I didn't catch him in his act.

"Well then captain, looks like the temperature is getting to you as well", I said leaning back in my chair. A large frown appeared over his face.

"What of him?", he replied.

"You seem to have me mistaken for some foolish, fresh-out-of-college, Captain Sven. Your in the White Lotus Army, not in the police force, why the hell are you operating in homeland affairs, you damn know right that's in violation of Republic City main contract!", I yelled. I knew I had him, I could even tell I had struck his guards to the point where they found themselves a little paranoid.

Captain Sven's reaction had caught me off guard. Instead of looking surprised as all the other guards he was nodding his head and smiling at the same time. He started to laugh but it didn't last long, he then paused and looked up at me. "Well I've obviously misread you boy, here I thought you were just some no good thug, well I was wrong but it's alright because your only an Equalist spy, telling me about the history I already know. No, No it's fine being the Equalist you are you've have all the rights and power to do whatever you want", Sven said changing the main point back towards me. I look confused, he had obviously switched back the subject but he said with a hint of sarcasm.

Captain Sven slammed his fists on the cold, metal table and stood up, shooting out his finger into my face, "Who the fuck do you think you are? Here you go again telling me what I can and can't do, boy your an Equalist I'm with the WLP we're different! Me being in the army makes no difference, whats so ever! Where here focusing on you not me kid, YOU!", he shouted. There was a long silence until he sat back down, comfortably in his chair.

"We don't look so different, you and I, what makes us apart?", I asked

"Dammit do I have to spell it out for ya? YOUR AN EQUALIST!", he said pronunciation each letter of the word. Spit flew out of his mouth on the last letter, slamming into my face.

"Yea, I heard that.. but I'm not. I've resented being one of them for a long time now, why the hell do you think I've been living here in the Yangchen area? Besides who's in a better situation here: Me, the one who resents his evil family to join the good side or You: Who forces his own soldier to enter the city, breaking the law!, and terrorizing citizens with the message of the evils of Equalism? Seriously I've seen innocence die because of people like you!", I exclaimed.

"It wasn't my decision kid, I was flowing orders from General Situ to put this city into lock down. Everyone knows there's going to be a revolution soon, we can all feel it. It's up to me to secure these people to the fullest extent with safety and comfort, and I don't need some insolent brat like yourself telling me otherwise!", he shouted.

I truly wanted to pull my hair out, he was absolutely agonizing there was no way I could convince him any differently. There was a knock at the door, getting Sven's attention he slowly and exhaustively rose from his chair and walked out the door. About five minutes went by I could faintly here shouting coming through from the sound proof door, to my surprise the door open so suddenly but Captain Sven had not returned.

"Your a real pain kid, you know that? All I do for you people and this is how you repay me? Where the hell is Porter?", Chief Bei Fong asked.

"Probably back at the place you set up for him but I need to get out-"

"Yeah, yeah don't worry about it, I already having the paperwork being filed for your release. It's a pain in the ass but it has to be done, you know they had you set without bail?, She asked curiously. She wore the same outfit as Captain Sven but I had already knew that his was fake.

"Well I can guess they wouldn't give meany special treatment", I said.

She squinted her eyes at me and looked over her shoulder. She could hear Sven shouting to the guard officer just as much as I could, she smirked. "What a baby. C'mon kid, I've arranged for you to leave and return to you apartment"

"Wait, I can just go? Really, just like that?", I asked. It had all seemed to easy, that I was just being let out and going home. It all seemed to quick.

"Yes! Now stop asking questions and let's get the hell out of here", she ordered. I immediately stood up, she didn't have to ask me twice.. or three time, anyways I knew what was going down and I needed to get back to John and Ruan. I followed her out the door, Sven was gone, vanished as he was nowhere in the long metal halls. The air felt good, relieving really against the ice cold temperatures I had endured on the ATU and the interrogation room. I was glad I hadn't given him any information, my whereabouts in the city must be unknown and there's know doubt that he would want to question John's men about where they came from. However I really hadn't worried about them needing help, they were so advance they could've probably taken out the whole damn planet.

The sun had hit me harder than John's training. The heat wrapped itself around my face and I wore it proudly, soon enough my body was back to its normal temperature and I felt great. The Chief wouldn't tell me anything about whats been going on but I'm pretty sure she knows a lot more. We walked along the edge of the street, approaching one of her metal plating satomobile, which was the new civilian automobile created by Hiroshi Sato of Future Industries.

She opened the back seat and pulled out handcuffs and motioned me towards them.

"Your kidding right? Why do I have to wear those?", I asked uncomfortably at the steel cuffs.

"You see those people over there? Well there your fan club", she nudged her head to the left, pointing out a huge angry group of people.

A large sea of angry eyes were locked onto mine. My name had gotten around ever since my arrest and I guess it wasn't safe to let them assume I was just being let go, I would've been dead in minutes. I gave in, she slapped the cuffs onto my wrists and I sat in the back seat. She slammed the door and starred at me through the half way rolled down window.

"I have to stay here Khai but don't worry about your drivers, they should be coming as long as their not slacking off, good luck kid and try not to get yourself killed", she said "encouragingly". I grinned, know need to hate everything and hating her would be the last thing I need but I waited like five minutes before my drivers arrived.

They wore modern metal bending police armor, nothing special about them.

"You Khai?", The officer grunted. It was obvious he wasn't a big fan of mine either but he would be taking me back to John so it wasn't all bad.

"Speak up kid, we don't have all day", the one in the passenger seat said.

"Yea, I'm him"

"Good"

He started up the satomobile, the engine roared with great condition but that wasn't until to men smashed the windows. Glass from both the drivers and passenger seat flew inward and their doors swung open. A stun baton shot out a bolt of electricity into the officers neck and sent them into a very long period of numbness. They grunted heavily and their bodies were rendered useless but only for a short time. Their bodies were dragged out of the car and thrown in street, like garbage and the two attackers got in.

They were Equalists I could tell. They're dark goggles were attacked into the dark mask. Around their face wrapped what seemed to be a golden rebreather but I could never tell what it was. Th darkness of their voice matched with the darkness of their eyes.

"Jun's been expecting you, traitor", his voice was muffled by his mask.

My heart started to pound I was completely vulnerable with these cuffs on. It would be awhile before anyone could notice the knocked out guards so nobody saw what was going on. I felt what seemed to be thousands of volts of electricity go through my body, my vision blurred at a rapid pace and my air became thick. The stun baton had be shoved into my abdomen but it felt like it went all the way through sending an icy pain throughout my whole body.

Things got dark, very dark. I soon blacked out.


	22. The Era of Equalism, Curse of Salvation

_Authors note: A very long chapter, you've been warned!_**  
><strong>

**Jun (2 hours before Khai's kidnapping)  
><strong>

"Your problems don't concern me Jun, this, Khai of yours doesn't impress me one bit and since he's not a bender, he does not peak my interest.", Amon said. The light howls of the wind whipped, down the corridor of the Jaded hotel, a very expensive but classy hotel that Amon liked to use for his private meetings.

"I know, but this man is important to me and he must be caught!", Jun implied. The hooded, masked man, the leader of the Equalists, starred down at Jun, he had no idea what this Khai person was and he could care less.

Amon didn't want to be bothered by some, minor detail of a Equalist turning on their own. It's true he came from a powerful family but Amon knew his dad, he knew Bao and knows that he would never betray him. Besides, what could a mere young adult do to their whole plans? He had know knowledge of them, he was to weak to stop anyone by himself and the mention of a member of The Pride's murder did not amuse him either.

The Pride to him were nothing more then just nationalists trying to get support for their own selfish cause. In fact Amon liked having them around, they were disgracing the WLP and assassinated their VP, if they continued the Equalist party would have more reason to recruit. As long as Amon was around he could care less what happened to his officials that worked in the districts, just mere pawns doing his paperwork of propaganda, he was the real prize.

"This Khai, is your annoyance, not mine! I still have to deal with more of my Revelation speeches, let alone I have the avatar on my back, the last thing I need is some brat whose barely 19 to worry about!", Amon shouted. His mask was of an emotionless face, only symbolized with a red circle on its forehead.

Jun didn't want to argue, not after all he's accomplished in his years of medical experience. Loosing all that and knowing that Khai and his family are still alive, would completely leave him with nothing. He would be crushed beyond repair, as much as he hated to admit it, he needed the Equalists.

"Yes, sir", Jun said, saluting to his superior.

"And what of this Porter person? I understand he comes from the same place as Robertson?", Amon asked, voice intrigued but heart enraged with anger.

"He's just a minor setback sir, you have nothing-"

Amon shot up from his chair, he had been sitting behind a mahogany desk, "A minor setback?. Jun, anything that has to do with that man, is no minor setback!", Amon paused slightly and an awkward silence filled the room, "I want Porter captured now, so far were in league with Robertson but only because of his technological advances! He protects us, we cooperate and I will not have this city fall under his command when we have accomplished so much. The era of true Equality has begun, we will not stop fighting for what is true equal, do I make myself clear?", Amon finished.

"Yes, sir but we have Porter already, he has already been treated with a new mixture of mine.. and Robertson's, but he will surely not survive the hallucinogens that he has come in contact with. They are of a high dose, and are very deadly.", Jun said. Amon paused for moment, scrambling through his drawer he pulled out a stun baton, and gave it to Jun.

"We have nothing left to discuss, my Lieutenant will show you out.", Amon said. Just like Amon's last words, Jun walked out of the room, unimpressed, angry, and obedient.

* * *

><p><strong>Khai<strong> **(present) **

I finally started to pull through. A jolt of pain continued to ripple throughout my body. I had no idea what time it was and with my whole body aching from numbness of those stun batons, I really couldn't care. If I were to even think about moving I would instantly feel the after affect of the baton's devastating electricity burns, that had been left on my stomach.

I had already been removed from the satomobile, my hands still cuffed together, I sat diligently along to far side of the long metallic room. The air was thick and hard to breathe, I panted and gagged for air. My eye sight blurred for a moment, going in and out. I could see a door. At the long end of the room it stood still but I still couldn't move but my arms weighted me down, my legs heavy, and my body numb.

_Don't worry, the effects will wear off._

My mind was talking to me, but honestly I didn't know whether this was a torture or if I was going insane. My vision got a little clearer but nothing in the room different then what I witnessed while unconscious. Darkness surround the long four metal walls and cobwebs infested every corner.

_Your a murderer! A monster! A deceiver!_

My mind became violent, whatever had happened to me during my abduction was making me hear things. My eyelids became heavy, my brain pulsed uncontrollably, and my heart tried to break free of it's internal prison. It took me every once of force to move my head, I spat on the ground. My mouth overflowed with drool, whoever had abducted me had neglected to give me water. For some reason for all my life, I had always needed more water than anyone. I had just been like my father.

_Your father, Your Brother, Your just like them all!_

My father. This was probably his doing, determined to punish the failure of a son he "attempted" to raise towards his liking of a bender hating prick. My brother. Should I even blame him or was he taking order just from my father, he was taking order from somebody. Was it still his fault, does he hate me to? I laughed to myself, why do I care? He was probably going to be the one ordered to finish me off, I didn't like to use hatred as a method of extra energy. Honestly, i'd rather to the work myself. I needed to become strong and I wouldn't give up without a fight.

_Do you even know who I am Khai? Do you remember me? Do you know what your family fucking did to_ me!

That voice it wasn't mine. I wasn't going insane after all but it seemed so familiar. My eyes, blinded by the flashing lights as they all came on at once. I could start to move a little without the effects of a stun baton going throughout my body. Apparently, according to my brother, stun baton's have a more lasting and painful effect on non benders.

My eyes blinked uncontrollably. The whole room was empty, no tables, lockers, or even camera's had been in the room. The only thing that decorated the walls were cobwebs and grime. There had been a long and reinforced window that I hadn't spotted before that connected the two rooms together, however the room wasn't empty.

Two Equalist soldier stood in an respected stance, as if waiting for nearby orders. Their lit green goggles shown furiously through their mask. However, most of my attention had been on the man in the middle, he was around my age, scruffy blonde hair, and wore an Equalist officers robe.

"The days since Kyoshi have been good to you, well that was before my friends found you that is.", a slight evil laugh had escape his mouth. I had found myself panting hard but rapidly gaining my strength back, the shocks have started to wear off, and fast.

"Who are you?", I asked exhaustively.

This had seemed to anger him, he swiped his hand across his forehead, pushing the hair out of his eyes. He let up off the speaker button, he whispered something to the guards standing next to him and they left without hesitation. His face had come up in my mind a million times in my mind but I added the College of Kyoshi to it and it all came together. However my mind filled with confusion.

"Jun, your Jun. You never talked."

"Well I'm glad you remembered so much of me. But yes I never talked, never had anything to say. Especially to you.", Jun said. It was if I could almost see the anger coming out of him, but what did I do to offend him? Whatever I was here for, I didn't want to look weak. I used some of my strength to get to my feet, I grunted as my muscles seemed to be straining.

"Please don't hurt yourself, that's my job."

"What the fuck do you want with me, we barely spoke! I've done nothing to you!", I shouted.

There seem to be a short pause in his voice but when he spoke he spoke with great irritation and absurdity, "Are you kidding me! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'VE DONE!", he paused, leaning his head forward on the glass and slammed his fist into the window. I thought he was going to pass out at first, his body stumbling back and forth, using his other hand to stable himself.

"Your families a bunch of murderers, your brother, you father. Now I finally get to kill you..", he said. At that point my heart stopped, I knew my family was bad but murderers? I didn't think they would go that far, no they could, I refuse to believe they would stoop so low. Then again I couldn't sworn I saw my brother on the day of the attack on Kyoshi.

Jun's fingernails dug into the glass, after years of isolation and oppression he would finally get what he wanted. Then after he dealt with me, he would go after they rest. _I won't let you __get away with such unjustly acts Khai. I will kill you today!,_ Jun thought, pressing his nails further and further into the glass, chipping looked back up up at me with blood lust in his eyes, he pressed a button on the control panel on his side of the room.

I could here the locks on the door pull away, the metal door immediate swung open but retracted slowly.

"The door is unlocked, go and we will meet shortly.", Jun's voice teased with aggression and hate. What could I loose, my whole families burden was on my back and I barely knew anything about it. The sad part was, it was probably true. Despite my hands still being cuffed, I walked only slowly to keep my strength in my legs. However I never got to the door alone, the two Equalist soldiers that had once stood by Jun had been waiting for me. They grabbed me and kept me close to them, releasing my wrist of the metal cuffs that had once surrounded them, they held my arms around my back, the pain shot through my arms as they tugged further.

I grunted softly as we walked down the metal corridor. Steam had shot out from pipes, it burned worse and worse as they shot out onto my wrist. My jacket had been removed, probably for weapon searching. I had on my red shirt with my darkened jeans, but they had done a number of ruffing them up for reasons I will never understand. My face and body was bruised and sore, ripple of pain often came from my torso area and other from my face. Burns of the stun batons had my left their marks as well.

It wasn't long until I was forced outdoors, I has been shoved without any information on my whereabouts or what I was suppose to do but the one thing I had on my mind was Jun.

_This guys insane, I've never spoken to the guy let alone murder his parents!, _I thought, trying to get sense of things. Was my family really responsible for the murder of his?

I was forced into a what seem to be a general compound of shipping crates and boxes. Pallets stacked on top of one another until they had began to topple over. However this wasn't normal, it was like I had been in hell. Papers, posters, and old news articles had been posted on every inch of the wall. The scary part was that this compound wasn't an actual compound. It had been set up, maybe for a duel, maybe for an execution arena, I don't know but I could tell from the stains of blood on the cement ground that I hadn't been the first one here.

I could see the edge of the compound from my side. It hadn't been very large but it hadn't been real but I had been completely boxed in. For all I know it could've been storage. I walked forward, gradually taking step by step, being very cautious for I didn't know what to suspect around any corner. The torn articles that made up of the walls all read the same thing, "Family of four slaughtered, one missing" or "Murder of WLP family, increases tension". One picture actually showed the dead body from the autopsy that had been done on them, but something told me that those weren't in the news paper. It didn't matter where ever I was, was made for slaughter.

"Impressive huh?", Jun's voice rang our throughout the boxed compound, echoing off every wall which made it hard to decipher where it had came from. I immediately swung around, my heart jumping beats like crazy. _This wasn't my fault!, _my mind screamed to convince myself of the murder I was accused of, but in my heart, somehow I knew I was guilty.

"JUN! Come out, please! I know you have a lot of hatred in you right now but we need to talk about this!", I shouted. I didn't direct my voice towards anyone. Did it matter? I couldn't even see him.

"Talk.. I've heard all the talk, I've seen the evidence! And that evidence talked back Khai. It had been your family that killed mine, why should I be the only one that suffers? WHAT ABOUT YOUR FATE?", Jun's voice shrieked with pain and sorrow. It had reminded my of the demon that I had fought, possessing Kessen, a member of the bending supremacist group known as The Pride.

I backed up against the wall, still unaware of his location I tried to slow my heart rate down by breathing slower. If I'm going to fight this guy, I need to be prepared and focused.

"I'm forced to hide myself because of you! My uncle died a while ago.. so know I'm alone. But it won't be long now, soon you'll feel like me! My pain, my suffering for years! You'll finally know.", Jun began to get hysterical but still even if he didn't know the whole story, I needed to defend myself by all means necessary. I ran, my heart running faster then my feet, I tried to dodge around every blood stained obstacle I could find, but everywhere I went seemed to be the same old pallet, crate and giant metal box.

I stopped and rested my arms on my knees, I couldn't keep this up. I was only loosing energy for no reason. I swiped my hair that had been in my eyes, I didn't even know when I had taken a shower last, I could feel the knots as I ran my fingers through my greasy hair. I had wandered into a forest of tires mounted on one another just for the sick purpose of someone to hide behind, and then end it all right there and then.

A trailer stood at the end of the what seem to be a labyrinth of tires, a white rusted trailer with its windows all boarded up. Its paint peeled but made an excellent factor to strike fear in someones heart and mind. The thing that I liked though was that there wasn't any blood on the tires or at least none that I could see anyways. It could have blended in nicely, _Jun what the fuck is wrong with_ you, I asked myself, as if he would respond within my own mind, but he did in reality.

"Your a coward, you hind behind your lavished wealthy life, while others die from your political hand, stand and FACE ME!"

"Where are you?"

"STAND AND FACE ME!", Jun voice was more terrifying then ever at this point.

"Then where the fuck are you Jun!", I strained my voice, my blood boiled inside me, my own personal adrenaline rushed and it seemed all time stopped and then, my heart froze entirely.

The trailer door opened and a man, dressed fully in a black Equalist robes, and a mask that ripped my heart out. I started to sweat in fear, that mask was like staring into the eyes of a pure demon, I felt the inside of my chest heat up exponentially. It had an armored round helmet on top but the face was that of a gas mask. It's spiraling eyes were enraged with anger and it's mouth held chambers for the actual oxygen breathers.

He wore a black hood over the metal helmet, this mechanized gas mask was the new technology for the Equalist party and a shipment like this could change the entire outcome for the revolution. This new Mechanized Equalist Soldier (MES) was Jun. His suit would drop any armies moral directly to zero and with a whole Equalist army with this technology, they would be unstoppable and would be a pain in the ass for Avatar Korra.

Jun shrugged, pulling out to what to be a small pipe but with a quick flick of his wrist it turned out to be a thin 6 foot retractable spear, a devastating weapon for Equalist assassins. Which had now been aiming at my throat.

"How does it feel to be in presence of death itself Khai? How do you feel, please elaborate on your pain.", Jun said. The gas mask had even made his voice sound more robotic.

_Dammit! How am I suppose to beat him with only my hands, should I play it safe?_, I didn't know how to settle this, maybe I should just fight, "Wait Jun, I would never kill anyone, I swear. We never even spoken in school, why the hell would I murder your family?", I tried to ask.

"You've never killed? Really, I bet Kessen and that man at Kyoshi College would still be alive if it weren't for you", Jun said taunting my with every breathe he took.

"That was differn't Jun! Kessen hurt my friend, or so I thought. And the man at Kyoshi was attacking Kya, an innocent bender! Why are you working for these people, when you know they deal so much violence to the world!", I shouted.

"To get to point A to point B, blood must be shed. Lives of the false innocence and immoral assholes that corrupt our world must be killed off to achieve full salvation. How do you think we'll obtain true peace Khai? Tell me, by standing around? Action must be taken, salvation must be secured for true peace Khai, and the immoral shall be forgotten.. forever!", Jun praised. A scary thing that annoyed me was that I didn't even know what side he was truly on. Was he just using the Equalist party to achieve "salvation"?

I didn't even speak not would he let me talk, he charged my and in the suit he surprisingly moved fast. He brought back his arm, getting nearer to me he started to thrust out his arm, the spear inches from my neck, but it would soon be a lot closer to the tires. I ducked nearly just in time but felt a tiny breeze of air swipe against my cheek, which could have easily been the blood from my neck if I didn't take quicker action.

The spear dug itself tightly into the rubber tires and was hard to pull out, even for Jun but my chance was there and I took it. I stepped out of the way, twisting my hips, I executed a perfect round house kick to his ribs but my expectations were much, much higher then it should've been. My foot connected yes but with the metal plating of his under armor which I hadn't notice.

The metal split my shin, it was if I had just kicked a metal pole.. but with my shin. Jun slammed his elbow into my leg, the blood curtailing twisted pain burned deep. He immediately followed up by slammed his fist into my chest sending me back into the tires, but he wasn't done. I grunted heavily as his fist closed tightly around my throat, gasping and choking for air, my throat begged for the pain to stop.

"You must realize that the world is done with you, your a useless human who desire for violence must stop", Jun said. I couldn't stop thinking about the irony, as Jun wanted revenge and my death, as he was praising about achieving peace. In the situation that I was, I could help but laugh, which had surprised Jun. Even though I couldn't really see his face, my change of attitude had definitely confused Jun.

"J-jun", I couldn't say anything else. His hands had been fitted with thin metal plating but enough to feel it crushing my windpipe. I wrapped my arms around his grabbing his elbows and I purposefully fell backwards. The tower of tires rolled, and we crashed onto the ground, our limbs tangled up but still we were thirsty for blood.

I would try and convince him by any means necessary, even if that meant knocking him conscienceless. Jun lifted himself up and starred at me, his demonic gas mask showed know emotion but it was only a shield for Jun's true devastating emotions.

He came after me, his fist swung wildly but with great force. Every block I made, forearm or just palm is didn't matter, it had left a stinging pain and a pulsing bruise. I caught one punch, ignoring the pain I followed up with an elbow strike to his chest. I struck metal but it wasn't as bad as my shin. I repeatedly bashed Jun in the chest but this time I was getting messy and unorganized, following up with fist, palm, elbow, and hammer strikes hoping to do some damage.

The only thing I was doing was pushing him back but only about a couple centimeters. I focused my energy on my last elbow strike, curling my fist into my chest, I lashed out. To my disadvantage he had already seen this coming, catching the strike in a single catch with his other fist around my other wrist, struggling to get free.

_Dammit Jun!_, he had begun to turn my elbow inward, my skin going the opposite way, burning with agony with every centimeter his fist got closer to my chest. He lurked forward and my back started to bend inwards. His face was nearly over mine, I shouted in pain because I had accidentally put pressure on my injured ankle, sending a warm stream on blood down into my shoe and soaking into my sock.

I bent down on my uninjured knee, resting my my bloodied ankle straight on the ground. His dark mask leaned over me, ready to silence me for good at any second, I hollered in pain as he bent my arm inward, my skin began to split, blood ran through my arms. His armor and new technology was to strong, I would be afraid that the MES units would be to much for even Porter.

"Your a coward, your mind betrays you into thinking you someone your not! Your hopeless, spineless, soulless, you'll never fit into this world and anymore Khai, my world.", Jun said, his mechanized voice echoed in my head, but I will not give up.

"Dammit Jun, I'll prove to you I didn't kill your family! Even if that means I have to break every one of you fucking limbs!", I was the loudest my voice had ever gone. My new serious attitude had kicked in and it had been fierce with new pride, original pride.

I fell backwards once again, my hand still around Jun's, he toppled over with me. However, since I was planning this, he had landed on my good foot instead of my whole torso. Pushing up with my foot I threw the bastard over my whole body, he flew and crashed into a metal bin, his metal crashing into the other pieces of scrap metal that had been in the bin.

I had struggled with the kick. I had only used one leg and I was hauling the iron giant over my whole body. I got to my feet as quickly as possible, blood rushed down my ankle as I got up, leaving a small pool of blood in its place.

My whole body was soar, I was clutching my arm, trying to keep as much weight of my foot as possible, and trying to survive the tin man. Not knowing where he was at, my mind only focused on one thing I needed to possible defeat Jun. I had once tried to remove Jun's retractable spear from its prison within the tires, once before but Jun's hand that had been around my throat had the advantage then.

I kept hopping, the spear only a few feet away from my hand. I stumbled a bit, only to my luck I had caught myself on the spear. The extra push I need to defeat Jun but that was only a false glimpse of hope for I tugged and tugged as hard as I could. I cursed, the retractable spear had been lodged deep within the tire, I couldn't pull it out.

Straining my arms I pulled harder only to feel the presence of another person behind me. I turned around in horror to see the mechanized soldier standing right behind me, his dark gas mask gazed down upon me, he hadn't even bit bruised.

"If it means anything to you, I've been behind you.", Jun said mockingly. He shot out his arm, his fist nailing me in my solar plexus. I flew back onto the ground and grunted in severe pain. I didn't know what to do, I usually had a plan but know I had just been crawling backwards with my bloodied hand clutching my chest. My free hand dug into the warm gravel, reaching beyond and hitting the dirt.

"Jun, I never killed anyone. I don't know how your family died but you just can't blame mine!", I said. He didn't reply. I had pulled myself just enough to have had reach the trailer steps, Jun had been walking the whole time, shouting obscenities the whole way, trying to break my spirit.

I had managed to lift myself to my feet, bringing myself up by holding the handle on the trailer door. Jun began to laugh deeply.

"You know your place Khai, so why don't you go there. GO THERE AND BURN!", Jun shouted and walked faster towards me, but he had already provoked me enough.

"FUCK YOU!", at that point all of my pain could just go to hell. My eyes locked and pierced through his metal mask. I knew he was like me on the inside. He wanted to become stronger and he would choose any target just to get it, like i did with my own father and brother. However, that didn't excuse the fact that his family was murdered by mine, as he accused me of.

I launched my whole body at him, I tackled him, our body collapsing and kicking up dirt. My wrist had gone around his neck and I repeatedly slammed his head into the ground, cursing the whole time. His arms flailed all over, trying to get a good grip on me but he was to disoriented.

"Listen to me! Whatever happened with your family, I'm not involved with it but my relationship with my father and brother is my problem, not yours! If they had anything to do with your family's murder, then I'll handle it, I have enough shit to deal with it so just get the fuck out of my damn way!", I slammed is head again into the ground once again to make sure he gets the point.

"You don't know what it's like Khai, loosing your whole family in a single night, changing your name and living with you dying Uncle. How could you even imagine what I've been through. You were born with everything and that attack I called out on Kyoshi was merely just to get to you, I wanted the Equalist party to fall from what they've done but yet their popularity remained the same, lucky for you right?", His voice had changed, it was calm and soothing and slight brush of sorrow had come over him, I had great sympathy for him but was replaced by anger.

My knee was on his chest, as he laid still in the gravel. My fist up high, as if it was ready strike again but I knew it would only hurt me.

"Why? Why would you deliberately call upon an attack which killed young adult? People like me died because of you, your own classmates! How they hell would your own people agree to such a thing?", My mind was boggled, unaware to comprehend the motive. Jun laughed.

"Classmates? Oh get over yourself Khai, I called that attack to destroy the Equalist Party, not kill kids for the fun of it. And if you think I had any sort of relation with the students their your just as stupid as the avatars plans to fight Amon alone, he can take away bending you know." Jun had immediately changed the subject by I had still been on course.

I would be lying if I said Amon's new ability hadn't intrigued me but I was still focused on Jun's story, for I was not a bender so it didn't even concern me, "Why would you disown your own people?", I asked, which only made him laugh harder.

"Boy, you really are a dumb ass aren't you? (I slammed his head into the ground once more, which had shook him up pretty good), hey it's not my fault you can't keep up. Your family, both brother and father are important people in the Equalist party, true it makes me want to slash my own throat to work for them but I just need to get a little closer, and get the Equalist a little more chaotic then usual. Just to the point where they shake themselves apart and there won't be anymore political leader. I've always hated Amon but work is work, so once he's killed by the avatar or some other poisonous accident, I'll take charge and bring a whole new meaning for the word salvation!", Jun said.

I was shocked and amazed, that he could even hold such evil inside him but he needed to be stopped. I hadn't even noticed his left arm, free and moving incredibly fast, a fierce sharp pain had entered my ribs.

I hollered in pain and rolled off Jun, who had helped to push me off. Jun got up, unharmed, twirling a medical scalpel in between his fingers. Drops of blood, ran down the blade and onto his fingers, dropping softly onto the dirt. I screamed in pain, a third body part had been bleeding severely, except my hand and shin had started to heal.

"You see Khai, your weak", Jun said as he raised his scalpel higher, bringing it down for one last strike. I hadn't additionally seen the last strike but I could remember tiny spots of blood appearing on my face, a quick hollow scream echoed throughout the abandoned compound. My foot recoiled, a perfect side kick had struck Jun in the middle of his stomach sending him flying back into his own retractable spear, still sticking out of the tire but now through his chest.

The tip dripped blood and Jun grunted. He got quieter and quieter but everything eventually got silent. Not even a bird chirped on this day. I couldn't help myself feel bad for Jun, my family had caused him so much pain that it had eventually killed him. I laid on the ground, I had found myself to weak to move but now I knew I could relax. I swear to honor Jun though, I will bring down the Equalists, my father, and my brother. By any means necessary.

"A good fight Khai, I must admit I underestimated your intelligence and strength!", The body said.

My blood froze, my whole body went numb, and my eyes were locked onto the dead body of who I thought to be Jun.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to fight you personally but rest assured your death will come, right now I have more important things to do, this was just to see you abilities in combat. To defeat a MES soldier, is impressive but try fighting a whole army of them, you barely killed one!", Jun's voice had come from the Mechanized gas mask but still no movement.

I looked up, on the roof on the compound building, a bit away from here was a man in a brown cloak, accompanied by another man wearing the same outfit. A speaker and transceiver had been implanted into the mask, and I had been fighting a random Equalist soldier. Jun had deceived him, Khai had been pitying Jun but in reality, Jun could have killed him at any time, he had underestimated him!

"Coward!", I screamed as loud as possibly could with the little energy I had left.

"Call me what you wish Khai but I had more important things to accompany to.", Jun tried to say more but was interrupted by a blaring alarm that had come across the intercoms.

"Speak of which, I have to go, Monna your with me. Let's leave our friend here to bleed out while he can."

They left in a blur, my head woozy and body exhausted from fighting.

I will regain my energy, I will fight Jun, and I will win, but this time I must not underestimate him. He had played me like a fool.


	23. Prideful Equalism

Splinters dug deep into Chen's fingers, tiny drops of blood ran down the tips and dripped onto the floor. The fifty sixth crate hadn't been the easiest to open. IN fact it had been the worst. Chen grunted as he retracted his fingers, his nails had been ragged and chipped. Barely visible splinters had dug themselves down deep in between the nails and the skin.

"Move!" Ordered Admiral Geming, pushing Chen aside before he could even get a chance to move.

Geming slammed a crowbar between the tiny slit under the lid where it had been nailed down. He pushed down hard and the lid began to rise, bits of wood flew up and then the wooden panels that had made up the lid rose as well, revealing the nails that had been holding it down.

However the lid had broken in a difficult way that had broken large chunks off the wooden panels instead of individually, rather then the whole lid coming off easily. Geming cursed to himself, as he used his own hands to tear and tear at what was left of the wooden lid.

"Damn. I'm really lucky I don't have to fight with my hands. By the way, can't be just use our bending?" Chen asked. Chen bit down on the big enough splinters, painfully removing them and spitting them out, repeating the painful process which made every finger tip blood red and sore.

His hands shuffled through the packaging strips, deeper in the box he felt something metal at the bottom and a great deal of excitement grew in his eyes. He started to pull it out, his hand grasped onto the side of the machine and lugged it upwards, which had been difficult to pull up because of its packaging.

His fears had been realized, a brand new phonograph machine had been in his hands and soon it would be all over the wall.

"Dammit!" He shouted lugging the large machine against the side of the boat. The springs, metal bits, and the music funnel had shattered and was followed by a ball of blue flames which had rendered it completely destroyed. Chen was a little worried, Geming had always seen so calm underground, or at least not as tense.

"Sir, wouldn't it just be easier to use bending?"

"No, I don't want to risk destroying what we came he for. Go open that crate over there!" As Chen's heart rate had finally slowed down from all the box's he had opened, Geming's had started to rise.

"Crowbar" Chen said. He had been eying it the whole time they were there and with his fingers being in poor condition, he needed it. Geming tossed him the crowbar and sat down on a unopened crate to catch his breathe. He had been an old fellow and not so as youthful as Chen or anything other member of The Pride. Yu had been the second oldest and he was mostly anti-social but he secretly admired benders.

Once again the crowbar was wedged under the lid and pushed until it was clean off. Chen proceeded to search through the packaging, still not knowing what he was looking for, his pulled up another phonographic machine.

Geming was furious, he had hoped his tip he had gotten wasn't a fake. Chen eyed the music player from every angle, it had been in good quality and it had been one of the latest editions of the new technology that surrounded Republic City. However its time had quickly come to an end as Chen used his metal bending skills to compress the music player into it was nothing but a rough and ragged, metal ball. It had been completely unnoticeable by the time Chen had finished with it, even the sound funnel was utterly destroyed.

Chen could almost see smoke rise from the Admirals mouth, his fury had been so enraged his could possible become a human bomb.

"Yo, Geming, what are we lookin' for exactly? Wasting all this energy is such a drag, not to mention a waste of time. Can't you just let me off the leash and go wild, we'll save much more time this way." Chen said. He leaned against the wall and shrugged. The cargo ship that they had highjacked had been on the outskirts of republic city and had towers of crates everywhere underneath.

Geming slowly rolled his eyes over to Chen, who had now been picking his teeth with his own pinky finger. He had always thought of Chen as a lazy individual but Jun's reasoning had made up his mind, he would not risk breaking the rules of the clan. Everybody knew that Jun had been spying on the Equalists, or at least that's what he told them.

Geming started to breathe slowly, he could not feel himself control his own heartbeat, slowly down the process to a point of relaxation.

"No Chen, we have used our talents to point that makes us uncoordinated and arrogant. We want non benders to realize the power of us! We want them to fear us. To have already lost a member before the war has already begun was shameful, however those other two sand members seem to take it just fine. Another reason to enforce more barriers upon ourselves."

"Right. So which one died again?"

"Kessen."

"Oh yes, yes, the one who swindled everyone out of the yuans at a single game of cards."

"Yes and having to take more drastic measures like having Sento and Delun on deck of this ship, irritates me. We had only two men kill the WLP vice president and his bodyguards for spirits sake, and yet only one member dies by a mere child!"

* * *

><p><strong>The Pride (On Deck)<strong>

_What about my scroll! Your wasting time you fool!_

"You sound ungrateful, surely I've must have mistaken you tone, right?"

_Being controlled by a mortal sickens me! But you and I have made a deal. Why the wait?_

"You'll get your damned scroll, patience is one thing a mortal had advantage of that a demon doesn't. Well.. me anyways."

_Delun..._

A slight breeze had blown Delun's traditional Pride robes. He had been on the very top of the boat, trying to get some peace from all the chaos that had been going on after Jun had told them about Kessen's death. Everyone had been shaken up, not my sadness but by shame. Shame that some kid with a sword could have beaten a member of them.

A single breeze of air whipped across his cheek, leaving behind an icy burn which left no mark. With the help of the demon locked away inside him, Delun could feel the chi presence of anyone on the ship. He could feel his leader Geming's and Chen's chi, which had been underneath. Sento had been approaching him from behind. Delun's moderate gaze slightly turned into a frowned and let out a small breath of air.

"The area's been swept, we should start heading down to see what they've found." Sento said.

Delun nodded but never moved. His mind was to focused on another thing.

"Something wrong?" Sento asked.

With the demon inside him his body felt like pure energy. It was if he had been in an infinite avatar state which never went away or had any exhausting side effects. Delun never used his bending except for pure combat purposes. Unlike most water benders who train for their skills, Delun was born with an gift. A gift that should've been a mistake to have given him.

Even Delun hadn't known exactly where it had come from all he knew was that he could manipulate life and death. Crossing over to the spirit world was the easy part. Getting the spirits to reason with him, well that was something else, a whole new challenge.

Delun lifted his hood, covering everything until the side of his face was completely blocked off from sight.

"No, I'm fine." His voice uttered a slight darkness.

Sento looked at him strangely or at least what he could see of him. A questionable expression appeared on his face and he knew more then anyone in the group that something was wrong.

"Alright then, lets regroup and see if they found what their looking for."

"No. That won't be necessary."

Sento raised a brow, confused with Delun's choice of treason. You never went back on a order from Admiral Geming, "And why is that?"

Beside that brown hood that masked a truer evil than anyone had ever seen, he had shown very little interest in the device Geming had so longed for. He had other plans to deal with and he needed to get them done as fast as he could. An crooked grin grew on his face and a slight adjustment added to his tone.

"Because they've already found it."

* * *

><p><strong>Khai<strong>

Blood seeped through my hands. Warm blood seeped through his fingers, but he felt like it will soon be all over. I had fallen into a dark depression, my mind flooded with violent thoughts.

_I can't let this happen, I won't die_ _here._

My one free arm shifted through the loose gravel, a wave of dirt pushed from my arm and created what seemed to be a wall of pebbles. My nails dug harder into the ground and I dragged my body, loose rocks digging and scratching their way across my skin, every time I pulled close and closer to the door where I had been forced to enter. I could feel rocks actually indent themselves into my chest, after ripping holes in my shirt.

I used one good leg to aid me in my race for survival and so far death was catching up. The door was the finish line and I had one blown tire, death already speeding its way up to grab me and pull me to wherever it had decided my fate.

_Jun, I will.._

My hands had finally reached the cold concrete of the first step. It was harder to get up because I had nothing to grab onto and hoist myself up. My other arm was tucked tightly around my side, keeping the blood from pushing out any harder then it was. It felt like a running hose. Only someones thumb had been halfway on the tip to make the water come out faster.

_Stop.._ you

My head had connected with the corned of the third step. I grunted as the sharp pain pulsed throughout my head, however it didn't stop. I couldn't tell if I was going crazy or just imagining this pain but my head would not stop hurting, it could feel it vibrate. Pulling my self in front of the door I hadn't changed at all. Death had already beaten me to it and know I was in his hands.

My eyes starred upward and my hands collapsed onto the cement, releasing the blood as if it had been a clogged pressure valve. Blood made its way out of my side. It stained my whole stomach a permanent dark red. It even soaked visibly into my red shirt, it hadn't been as dark so it plainly stuck out.

Light engulfed my eyes, not a blinding light but a peaceful one. It hadn't hurt, it hadn't stung, I let it in like an old friend. I welcomed it, however it didn't know I had a knife behind my back. I was determined not to let death have me. My life was not going to end like this, not while so many thing were on the line, stuff that even did not concern me.

"He's here, but he doesn't look good. What do we do?"

Republic City, Benders, the Avatar, and even Kya. I hadn't seen Kya in forever. I hadn't remember the last time we've seen each other but we'll meet again. Like I've said, I wasn't going to let it all fall here.

"Bring him in. It's time we had a talk."

* * *

><p><strong>Somewhere In<strong> **Anywhere  
><strong>

"Where Am I?" I moaned.

My body was numb, I couldn't feel a thing. Hell if I were laying on a bed of nails right now, I would sleep soundly. I could here voices. Muffled voices, that echoed by my ears but it was all gibberish to me. A warm blanket of light laid across my cheek, not from the sun but from an actual overhead light.

"Calm down Khai, your safe. For now anyways."

That voice, it was an spirit. They're here to take me away! Flying through another dimension at lights speed, I knew all, I saw all, and I forgave all.

"No spirit, don't take me!"

Blurry blobs of mass hung over me like paper lanterns. Grey weights that just held me down to the platform I was on.

"How is he?" A deeper voice asked.

"Delusional, _very_ drugged up. It's almost comical." The first man said.

I regained feeling in my wrists, and it started upward throughout my arms. My hands were still numb, lifeless as if they hadn't been there. Purple blobs floated through the sky like cloud, my whole head felt like it had compressed into itself like implosion

"This isn't funny Arann. This is my little brother, can you help him or not."

"Bo, pump somebody full of lysergic acid diethylamide, you might as well just call the circus.. or maybe a more qualified doctor."

Bo starred at Arann with a fearful stare. Arann had been one of those guys who tried just about everything to get something to a point he liked. Bo had befriended him in the academy while first becoming an Equalist soldier but now he seemed to have regretted it. However, he was stuck with him and couldn't avoid him. The thought that he shot up Khai with LSD, made his mind whirl.

"You pumped my brother with LSD! Dammit, do you know the side affects? please tell me you added something else to it!", Bo shouted angrily.

"Man, relax. I wouldn't just fill your bro with a powerful hallucinogen then walk away saying "screw it I'm done". I had Jun add an extra chemical to it to make it less harmful and more strengthening. Basically it's an energy shot, _with_ the side affect of hallucinations of course.. " Arann informed him. He looked back down at Khai who seemed to be nodding his head constantly. A lot of the drugs and medicine they have received were from Robertson. His advancement in technology was outstanding and with their medical combinations it was like they had been creating whole new human beings.

Arann turned around, shining a miniature flashlight into my eyes. I felt them twitch, I had control of my eyelids, and soon my whole face felt just as it should've been, sore.

"His pupils are dilated. Well it's good he's responding. Don't worry about it, I didn't kill em'." Arann said with a sarcastic grin.

"That's assuring. Listen can you do me a favor and let me be alone with Khai? I want to talk to him alone."

Arann flicked off his flashlight and looked at him with uneasy eyes. Wearing his full on Equalist armor, Bo couldn't really see much emotion in him at all. In fact he had barely seen his face, he had never taken it off. The only thing different about his uniform was that the gold apparatus that wrapped around his head was gone, he said he had removed it because he thought it was useless.

Arann nodded.

I could hear the door shut, my ears had regained some sound but it was slightly deafened. It took my awhile to realize that my brother had been in the room with me. Shortly after the man named Arann left, I could feel pressure on the top of my head. By the way Bo had been reaching over to my head I could tell he was injecting me with something.

I tilted my head to where the point our eyes match. I was unfamiliar with his look. It had always been so aggressive, the eyes of an oppressor, the day we fought at home. Now, he wasn't himself, I could tell he wasn't himself. His eyes were dark but filled with sadness and regret.

"I gave you a sedative, your heart rate should be going down to its normal rate. It should also rid of any remnants of that damned drug Arann gave you. Idiot." Bo said.

His focus of me drifted off. He started to walk off in the distance but not out of the room. I could here medical instruments clink together as they were put back in their drawers. Arann's drug had began to fade, slowly I started drifting back into reality. I also noticed that my arms and legs were held down by leather straps.

"Why?" I said softly.

"Because the drug Arann gave you was a hallucinogen that rapidly increased heart rate. You were loosing a lot of blood when we found you so this drug sped up your heart rate and increased blood flow. All after we secured your wounds of course."

I could feel my heart slow down rapidly. It was almost as someone was squeezing it enough to forcibly slow it down. Nonetheless, I still was able to speak.

"No. Not that. Why.. why are you doing this?" I asked. I couldn't help but to hold back tears. The pain, murder, and future genocides they were about to commit was like a spear to my heart. My family was in on such evil it sickened me to the point of vomiting.

My breathing became irregular. The air was to thick for me to breathe normally, causing me to breathe and pant more then usual. I didn't know if this was an effect of the drug or my emotions.

Bo studied me carefully. He knew he couldn't let me go and yet he wanted something out of me, I just didn't know what. He sat on a lab stool, his arms resting comfortably in his lap and he observed my breathing patterns and my on and off, violent struggles for freedom. He shifted positions in his chair.

"Do you know how to accomplish true peace Khai?" Bo asked.

I kept quiet and didn't answer because I honestly didn't know.

His blank face suddenly turned into a daring glare. he quickly shot up from his chair, nearly knocking it over. He had been out of my view so I hadn't seen much of his movements but I could tell they were rash. His head darted over mine, his face appearing out of nowhere, he continued by pressing his very own Equalist mask down into my stomach. It didn't hurt but It was so sudden, I hadn't expected it. He pressed further and further down and I could feel his hand on the back of my head, lifting it up.

I was forced to stare into the dark green eyes of the cracked Equalist mas that I had damaged during our fight. I starred into face of evil and genocide and I became irritated. Rocking violently, I tried to free myself of my restraints. Bo didn't say a thing, it was if he wanted me to see what the future would behold and this was it. The red dot on the masks forehead symbolized the party and I couldn't take my eyes off it.

The psychological pain that I had been going through rushed throughout my whole body, starting at my neck. My hands pulling harder and harder as if they were trying to grab the mask themselves. However all it was doing was giving me a nice rug burn. The whole psychological pain I had been going through had been fake, but it was the events I was causing on myself which really did the damaged. All in all, he lowered my head. Breathing harder then ever, I finally knew what I had to do.

"Peace must be accomplished by removing the threat. Benders are impure. Running around with the ability to move the elements, does that sound even like something we're suppose to do?"

_I had to kill my brother!_

"When I'm free Bo, I swear...!"

"Oh you'll get your chance Khai, but now isn't it. Your weak, you don't have enough hatred in you to bring yourself to kill me. Your own blood." He said taunting me.

Pacing slowly around me, he examined my struggling body. I had often had moments where I would pull to the point where it strained even the most strongest muscles in my body. Other times I would shout, cursing him out but he would just keep walking.. and looking.

"You choose death, rather then reason!" I shouted.

"But what if death is caused from the reason Khai? What if by slaying hundreds of the impure we could save hundreds of thousands of the righteous? Maybe millions Khai, just think about it?"

I could only imagine what horror he was thinking of. Then it hit me, something far worse then Republic City's civil war. The citizens of this city weren't the only ones in danger. It was the whole world!

"That's not possible. You plan to eradicate the whole world. Are you fucking insane?" I pulled harder on my restrained. Determined to get my hands around his throat, my wrists began to bleed.

Bo looked at me with cautious eyes, filled with both sadness and anger, he knew something I didn't. I could definitely see the anger and rage that built inside him but so did something else. So did something compassionate and regretful which always confused me. He thought about what I said and leaned close to my ear, his breathing brushed up against the side of my head.

"First we must learn to walk Khai, then run, then sprint. However, we've already begun to crawl Khai. So far we've done the impossible and with the civil war already started. Well, we can just carry out our plans. Most districts already are to cautious and falling apart. Soon they'll begin to crumble and need a new leader. That's where we come in Khai, that where we walk." Bo said without expression.

A long silence swept across the room. I could even hear the whining of air the that drifted through the air vent. Bo leaned back and stood up. He undid one of my arm restraints but carefully kept one hand on my arm to make sure nothing happened. Afterwards he started to walk out of the room after putting on his damaged Equalist mask.

"There's a sword in the weapons cabinet over to your left. Once you get free, I trust you know what has to be done."

I had been laying down the whole time on a surgery table, strapped to cold metal and unknown of my surroundings, expect for what I could see by moving my head left or right. I shouted anything back to him, curses, cowardly remarks, and other questions I ah about him. There was only one question he answered.

"Jun's a traitor!"

Bo stopped halfway out the door, seconds before he would close it. I saw his head lower but no emotional response came from him. I could see his hand tense up from hear that name. I had guessed they had already met. He only answered in his usual deep tone. However it wasn't one I had been expecting.

"I know." Bo said slamming the door.

The next few minutes felt like hours. I had already freed myself from the lab table and secured the katana sword from the medical cabinet. It had taken a long wait to get feeling back into my legs but they had been strong as ever. The katana I now held in my hand was made from high carbon steel, meaning it had a sharpers edge but it had a slight chance to become brittle and break during combat.

Since I didn't have any other weapons or armor, I had no choice but to use it. The lab I was in cluttered with papers on the counter. There were cabinets and drawers filled with medical supplies along with the the table which I had been strapped to. The time had come where I had to leave, my mind was still on my brother and to stop him... I had made up my mind to kill him. I had no other choice, he had permanently changed and there was no way he could be saved.

The halls of the compound had been the same as I had once seen them when I was led by two Equalists to "fight" Jun. Pipes filled the halls, come leaking and spewing hot steam. The alarm had stopped but I had a feeling that the Equalists were still as active as I was. I halted to the nearest corner, two Equalists had been patrolling the area but had stopped to talk to one another.

My feelings have changed toward others. Those who did not support peace must not live on. Those who supported genocide and murder are not human. I stepped out behind the corner. Darkness filled my heart and I started to feel anger take over my body. I couldn't stand the sight of them.

"Is violence a simple matter of defense or a cowardly way to give oneself personal freedom?" I hadn't really directed the question towards them personally but it did get their attention. It was more of a moral question to myself but they turned around bringing out stun batons but I had been ready this time. My years of constant training with both my father and Porter were about to pay off.

"Kill the traitor!" One said, darting at me fast and with electricity flying out of the baton.

It was a quick death, for I had been in a hurry. He lashed out with the baton, only to have it connected perfectly parallel to the handle of my katana. I directed it off to the wall where I proceeded to impale the sword into his palm, pinning it to the wall. His body fell off balance from the painful angle his arms had been bent when it was stuck to the wall. He fell backward into my arms, head perfectly in my hand and one around the chin. Pulling my hands different direction, a loud crunch echoed in the hall and the second Equalist only starred in fear and he watched his fallen comrade crumple to the ground, his motionless body more then enough words to warn him that I wasn't a rookie.

I pulled my blade out of his hand, causing a thin line of blood to run down the blade. I taunted him, aiming the tip at his head, I was hoping my taunting would provoke him to attack. Lucky for me, I was right.

He threw multiple quick jabs which all but one hit me. Since I wasn't a bender, it didn't have much effect on me but it still hurt a bit. He came at me again, this time it was in my favor. Catching his blow, I smashed my fist into his shoulder, sounding off a large snap and a brutally painful cry.

I didn't stop there.

I brought his arm around his back and drove it upwards. Soft cracks but loud cries called out from the man but he only begged for me to kill him when I drove my sword through his hand, much like the first man. However this was a little different. I had pierced through the hand which also impaled the man's back, only to come out the side, opposite of his heart.

The man now screaming and gargling on his own blood, fell to his knee, his arm permanently broken and forced into an uncomfortable position where it only hurt like hell so long the sword was in place.

"Damn..you!" He shouted. Blood ran from under his mask, I could only imagine that his face had been stained red.

He wouldn't survive long. The sword had ran through his chest and by the way he had begun to wheeze, I had guessed I nicked his lung. I removed the sword, and watched as the man collapsed to the ground in great agony. He would bleed out before any medical attention could reach him and with what jun had told me, all the Equalist forces were outside getting ready for the new revolution. I simply walked away, followed my the sound of unimaginable suffering.

I followed through the deserted compound, finding nothing but messy rooms and old prison chambers. Occasionally there was an office or two but it held nothing but old reports of Equalist attacks, however they were torn, ripped to shreds.

Room after room there was no one inside. No Equalist, no scientists of any kind, and no engineers. Trying to hold back my irritable conscious that begged me not to kick down a door, I had finally found a room who's occupants were not just a bunch of scattered pappers.

He struck me as a some one I knew, someone familiar, and thats why I didn't attack first. In fact he wasn't even surprised when he noticed me, unlike the others who bluntly attacked first. He resembled that of an Equalist soilder, regular armor and mask, however the golden rebreather did not stay.

He raised his arms in a shrugging matter but I could tell he was different, an Equalist but I could tell I knew him from somewhere. He looked at the bloodied swords that was held firmly in my hand.

"So I see you got my little present. I see you've got to use it to." He said jokingly.

"So, where do we go from here?" He asked, as if I hadn't looked like an escape prisoner.

His arms were crossed as if he was waiting for a delievery or for me to make the first move. Nevertheless, one of my hands rested firmly on my katana's handle.

"Well, you could tell me how the hell I can escape this place or you could end like the others who came across me. Your choice."

His mood or tone didn't change. I wasn't even sure he heard me, leaning up against the was he siezed me down. A slight shift in his standng position and he beagn to move just enough so I can predict what he was doing.

"And I thought my humor was bad." He said

"It wasn't a joke so much as a threat."

Under his mask, I could tell he was grinning. He couldn't take me seriously.

"Just like your brother, always so confident and so resentless." He movements lead toward a giant pipe that took up no more then a quarter of the room, twisting off the hatch that was built in the side, a large fog rose from the hatch. The smell was unmentionable, it smelt like rotting corpses.

He looked back to see my disgusted face. He laughed.

"Talk about skeletons in our closest!" He laughed harder, walking back to the spot where I first met him.

I was in no joking mood. He laughter did not affect me but from recognizing that old dull humor, I knew perfectly what my brother went through back there in that lab.

"So, Arann. You gunna tell me how to get out of here?" I asked

His hand gestured toward the pipe.

"You can't be serious?"

"Oh I'm serious, as funny as it is, I'm serious. The sewers are the only thing that your able to navigate through city block from here. The streets are full of us, step outside and you'll instantly sound off the entire army." Arann said.

I looked at the steaming, pipe and glanced back to Arann.

"This is a trap isn't it?", my hand clutched tighter around my blade.

"Khai, if this was a trap, we would have better methods to kill you then to lock you in a sewer."

He was right, he could've probably killed me any other way possible. Plus the sewers were endless, so I could have easily escaped once I entered. I walked over to the pipe, the mixture of bubbling hot, old meat sweat across my face and instantly I felt nauseous.

I could heard Arann laughing in the backround but I ignored him, I step one foot down into the enterance to the sewers, which ahd been like a four foot drop onto another pipe, and then another four onto the fece's that incrusted the ground below.

"Before you go, let me tell you not to underestimate your brother. The things he's been through have changed him violently."

I hadn't even thought about it. I knew he wasn't a careless soldier in it for the money. He was a monster that needed to be stopped, along with my father, and all of the Equalist members. Even before I jumped into the filth, I regretted keeping Arann alive. I would have been exactly like Bo if I would have slain him. So I left him alone. I didn't know why he helped me but I guess that maybe he's been pulled to far into this chaos and needs me to get him out, somehow.

I smiled at the thought of myself triumphing over the Equalist party, I knew with the help of John's mysterious army that we could win this. The avatar wasn't alone anymore and we had a much greater chance to win this damned civil war.

I thought back to when Arann announced that he was the one who had given me the sword, a fitting present.

After all, it was my birthday.


	24. Regroup and Recoup

How I spent my birthday: Kidnapped by a psychotic medic who's family was murdered by mine, tortured by electrocution, nearly dying by Jun who turned out not to be Jun, and walking through the shit that flowed under the city just to climb out near the coffee shop that Kya worked at. Terrific. Not only did I smell like the scum of Republic City, I looked like them to.

I was wanted by many people, and I would bet all my yuan's that they all wanted me dead. Good thing I didn't have any.

I didn't bother saying "hi" to Kya or at least not with the way I looked. I would go and see her but right after a hot shower and a change of clothes. I could still feel the electricity passing through my veins and I didn't know how a shower would turn out.

I felt like one big lighting rod.

I made my way to the compound, most of my worries were still on Ruan and hoping he had survived Mao's attack. My hand touched the knob to Ruan's apartment like a magnet, but I couldn't open it. I was to nervous to see what had become of him and I just couldn't bring myself to open it.

_C'mon just do it! _I said to myself. An uneasiness nested itself within my stomach, and my palm began to sweat. Not always a good omen. Opening the door, I peaked in. My heart jumped, as no one was in Ruan's bed.

I ran inside, searching to make sure my eyes hadn't played a cruel joke on me. Was he dead, had he been already buried? Being in a sort of a hysterical state, I searched everywhere. Even places where he wouldn't have been; like under the bed, the bathroom, and even under the table. Which had been completely useless because the table was basically a plank of wood with four legs on it and could be completely seen from the doorway.

Assuming the worst was not an option for me. I couldn't fight on with John, knowing my best friend was viciously murdered by a man who can shoot explosions from his body, as ridiculous as it sounds. I won't be able to accept that fact. I wouldn't. I ended my search at the fridge, not looking but just hungry.

"If your looking for me Khai, I wouldn't be able to fit in there. Oh, and we're out of cactus juice."

I turned around. Ruan was leaning against the door. He was wearing his old fashioned sand tribe outfit, which he wore all the time down in The Pits and Kyoshi. Aside from the bruises and scars, he was relatively healthy.

"You son of a bitch, your alive!" I said. A great load had been lifted off my chest. The worried feeling I had been feeling since day one of the attack was finally over.

"Yea not being dead does that to a guy." Ruan said. Yep he was alive all right, him and his stupid jokes. Ruan walked with a slight limp, but still he was alive, and that all that mattered. I walked over to him and after a quick fist bump, we caught up.

"Damn man, you really took out a member of The Pride?" Ruan asked.

"Yea, well more or less. He kinda led himself to his own downfall. He was a drinker and the rest is a more of a complicate story." I replied.

Ruan tried not to make his limp noticeable but utterly failed. I thought he had tripped onto his bed but he tried to play it off like he hopped into bed.

"So, Avatar Korra healed you up pretty good huh? I'm guessing she had to split when she was working on your leg." I said. Ruan grinned, pulling his arms behind his head and resting back.

"So you caught that huh?"

"Well your either drunk or your legs messed up. I'm gunna have to go with choice B with this one."

Ruan let out a quick laugh.

"Hey listen man, I got to get some sleep. Prescribed by one of John's medic's." Ruan said.

"Would you like a bed time story?" I sarcastically replied.

"Fuck off man." He said.

After that I left him alone. I would have like to have caught up with him more, seems like I haven't seen him in months, but he did need rest.

I slapped my hand against my forehead, I had forgotten to warn John about what I've encountered. I hiked up the staircase and pounded my fist on his door, hoping he was still here.

The door yanked opened and there stood John, fully armored up, as if going off to another war. He wasn't alone. There stood other member of his team that I knew to be Sergeant Dayton Bagg. However there had been another kid, around 17-18, that he hadn't seen. He wore dark and light eye liner, and was dressed as one of John's men, so I assumed he was with them. John look at my horrific clothing, that I had been wearing ever since I been in that fight with Jun.

My shirt was stained, and ripped. Parts of my jeans were burned and torn. Not to mention the blood stains that soaked my clothes and it all came with the the shit that coated my pants around my ankles, from walking in the sewers.

"You look like shit." John said.

"Nice to see you to." I responded sarcastically. I cracked a tiny grin.

My attention was brought back to the newest member of his gang. There was possibly even more I hadn't known about.

_Asshole, how many of his people does he plan on bringing to my planet?_ I thought.

"What's up buttercup, we're sorta busy here." He said.

"Where are you going? No, forget it, John there's something you need to know about the Equalists."

I could tell John's mind was busy on something else. He nudged his way past me, followed by Dayton and the unknown man who followed silently. I stuck out an arm in front of John, it was better he'd know now.

"Fine, what it is?" asked John.

"Well there's more to the story for what I've been through but I'll make it short."

"Hope ya do bud, now what's goin' on?" John said.

"First of all, Amon had created a new type of Equalist soldier. Jun calls it a MES, Mechanized Equalist Soldier, is now the main supply unit for the Equalist party. It's an heavily armored soldier that's armor is probably equivalent to your men, maybe a bit more troublesome! I'm not sure how he did it but I fought one and well.. actions speak louder then words." I said staring blankly down at what was left of my clothing.

"Damn right they do. Listen Khai, I'm pressured on time and I got plans, I want to hear more about this later as does Director Makarov." John replied. After shutting his door he said goodbye to me and started down the stairs.

"_Director_ Makarov?" I called out. I knew him to be just a soldier with John but never a director.

"Later Khai!" He called back.

I shook my head but I forgot it quickly. John and I had our shit to deal with and I couldn't understand when we were busy, but I'll be fine. We needed to do what was needed to be done and right now I needed food in my belly, a nice warm shower, and one hell of a nap.

* * *

><p><strong>The Pride<strong>

Chen and Kenten had been practicing with the weapon that was discovered on the cargo ship, they now controlled not only their own bending but an additional source of electricity.

With a slight tweaking, thanks to Sento, the stun gauntlet now shot out lighting bolts rather then its original stun on touch. They practiced above their sanctuary on the large boulders that hid their base, even though it was under ground. After a quick bolt of lighting from Chen's gun, he launched two slabs of stone into the rock, impaling it instantly.

"Damn. Ya know, I usually bend with my mind but hell, I could get used to this." Chen said cheerfully blasted out a huge portion of the rock. Debris flew everywhere, nearly hitting the backside of the bar.

"Agreed, we can do some serious damage with these things. That Khai kid we're after won't know what hits him." Kenten said.

Smaller chunks of rock flew out of the bolder this time as Kenten shot away with the lightning.

"Why are we killing this kid again? Is he really that important to kill a younger Equalist while the Amon and the rest of the Equalists are still at play here? Just seems to be a drag to me, don't know what Jun want's with this guy but it must be bad if he's constantly sending us." Kenten said.

They both were silenced by the sound of a rough grinding noise. The sound of the sanctuary tunnel eroding from the ground had alerted them but surprised them when Monna had stepped out.

"What goes on?" Chen said casually.

"Jun goes on." She replied.

"About Khai?" Asked Kenten.

Monna nodded.

"What the hell is with this guy? I even heard his name on Television from time to time, didn't this guy run away?" Kenten asked.

"I don't know much about him but don't underestimate Jun's intention's. Not only is he the son of a high Equalist leader but he's killed one of ours. Kenten, I'd thought you'd be a little more surprised that he killed one of your kind?" Monna asked.

He shrugged. He hadn't really felt anything once he heard the news. After he joined up with The Pride, he sort of cut out all emotions from the outside world. So when he did hear the news of Kessen's death is had the effect on him like a knife hitting solid steel.

"He was cocky. He should've known better to go off a mission and get drunk with whatever he was doing." Kenten replied.

"Man, there goes my intentions of winning back my yuans. I was planning on cheating them off him." Chen remarked.

Ignoring Chen's remark, she spoke. "Well the thing is, we didn't send him anywhere. He went off on his own and we recieved no notice."

"And this is surprising to you why?" Kenten said crossing his arms. In the distant the sound of lighting bolts could be heard being fired off from Chen's glove.

Monna raised an arm and lowered the brown sleeve that made up of the traditional Pride robes. She had been wearing a stun gauntlet as well and it was sparking at the finger tips.

"Because now were going to hunt down his killer!"

* * *

><p><strong>Geming and Yu<strong>

"You wanted to see me." Yu said deeply.

They both were underground and inside Admiral Geming's quarters. Geming had been wearing his brown robes while Yu was wearing his. The metal strips that made up his spinal and neck brace ran up his spine and around his waist had been clearly showing from the outside of the robes.

Yu hadn't been a just a frail old man. He was strong and independent and could step up to anyone. He had stated that the brace that had made him stronger was just a way to reverse his youthful days.

Before he came to Republic City he had been in Ba Sing Ce, where he lived out his life as a champion in the famous Earth Kingdom arena, Earth Rumble 6. After the fire nation invaded he fled, unable to live under fire bending tyranny.

"Yes. As we know those damn Equalists have found something big and that something now rests in our hands. or rather on them. I need you to do some high level recon and see what they're planning!." Geming ordered.

"What?", Yu asked.

"Basically I want you to spy, Amon will be having his famous.. or rather infamous Revelation speech and I need you to look into it."

Yu had a questionable look on his face, as he hadn't been expecting this type of assignment.

"Shouldn't Mao or one of the sand benders be doing this sort of thing?" Yu grumbled.

"Originally yes. However, they're some changes. Their all at working and you were the only one available. Plus I need your talents." Geming said.

Yu felt irritated, he really wasn't fit for stealth. He was more of the head on sort of bender, and he was damn good at it.

"Why don't you just send Sento, he'd do it?"

"Sento is busy tweaking the last bit of stun gauntlet's we have. Now I don't have to explain myself to you just do it! It's an order!" Geming barked.

Yu nodded and let out a deep sigh.

Yu had always been angry or rather mad at himself that somethings leaked out and affected the others around him. Unable to feel pain, he viewed himself as sub human. The ability to bend however in the famous earth kingdom tournament, Earth Rumble 6, was considered cheating for him as he could not feel the blows that was dealt to him as he dealt to others. When stone was to hit him, he come right back up as if blown back by a gust of wind.

He got tired at times, that was understandable but training without the ability to feel pain really pushed him to his limits and then some. He became stronger but it was also really risky.

He torn muscles and broke bones but unable to feel pain, lasted hours before he actually took notice. That said he often visited the doctors.

"Yes. Admiral Geming." He said. He got up, bowed to his superior and left.

Irritated as he was, he knew that Amon's revelation speech would be easy to find. Since Jun was secretly in league with the Equalists, he could tell him everything he needed to know about it's location. Usually, Geming would have ordered Yu to go meet with Jun and discuss the new details but lately Amon has been leaving Jun out of a lot of things. Now it's time to do things outside of clan regulations.

* * *

><p><strong>Later that day, Khai<strong>

I hadn't known how long I sat on this bench. All around me time seemed to speed up, and a was watching it from a slower point of view. Cars and people walked at incredible speeds yet, I sit here still on my first breath. It hadn't been whether or not I was sick nor hallucinating but I was taking it all in. The world as it was, The Pride, the soon to be Equalist civil war, and then there was my new family. They wanted me dead, and what could I say about it? Nothing.I would be lying if the thought of returning to the Equalists hadn't crossed my mind but my will power to suppress that thought was incredibly strong. I would never stoop that low.

After I had awoken from my glorious nap, I felt like taking a walk. That thought came and was pushed aside by another that encouraged me to shower first. I wore a short sleeve, black v-neck shirt. I also wore normal dark blue jeans and my new blue and white casual shoes.

Jun was still asleep and John had still been out so I decided to see if Kya was still wanting to hang out. I had my doubts that she wanted to because it had been getting late but then again that counter thought of "she probably wouldn't mind" came across and made me skeptical.

I sat in complete silence, others had sat next to me for a short while before getting picked up in a satomobile. My blade had rested in its sheath and its sling was tucked around my back, as it hadn't weird to be walking around without a weapon anymore. Although as much as people didn't trust one another, they wouldn't even acknowledge a 19 year old, with a sword.

"You goin' in or what bud?"

I hadn't been expecting a voice, no one had talked to me before. Well no one ever talked to anyone unless its a turf war between the gangs of Republic City, mainly the Triple Threats.

I looked around, standing behind a bench was tall dark figure. He wore a dark suit, with a black shirt underneath. He had white shoes and and shaggy brown hair. Scary thing was, it was like looking in a mirror. He had a faint resemblance of myself and I was actually pretty confused at the moment.

"Excuse me?" I asked, still recovering from my clone's appearance.

"Yea, ah kinda have on of those faces ya know? Strange and exactly the same, people offen' confuse me for someone else but hey, I guess I found out who they were relatin' to." He said.

I was still confused, _who the hell was this guy and why does he look like me?_, I thought. My faces gave off the most ominous look.

"Mind if ah joined ya bud?" He said, talking in a strange tone of voice.

"Well actually I.."

It didn't matter what the answer was, before I could get a sentence in he was over the bench. His suit nearly whipping me in the face as his hopped over. Getting comfortable his arms were already resting behind the bench, he inhaled a huge gust of air and let out a relaxed sigh. Still in complete confusion, I shifted down the bench, trying to avoid him and get my confidence to go in to see Kya.

"Well ya never answered mah question bud?" He said.

I looked over at him, sending him a blank stare, "I'm sorry, who are you?" I asked.

"That might have been a good choice to start off with, mah names Jay, Jay Niles, nice to finally see ya in person." Jay said.

He worried me now, someone with his resemblance of me, and hes heard of me? This guys a fucking nut. Not only was here creeping me out but he spoke with a detached accent, meaning he mixed up and shortened words which didn't always make you sound very smart. A lot of farmers in the Northern Fire Nation Colonies spoke like that, and I'd imagine they'd do that in other territories.

"Well if you must know I'm still thinking about going in... I'm sorry did you say you knew me?"

"Yep." Jay said with a sudden silence.

I looked at him as if he was going to add more to his statement but he sat staring in oblivion.

"Alright.. How?" I said, specifically finishing my sentence.

He looked at me with disappointing look, his eyes were of a very pale blue and were the only thing that told us apart.

"Nah bud, you gotta tell me when your goin' in to see her, Kya right?" Jay said.

My eyes filled with irritation, "Uh yea, how did you..?"

"Been in ther a couple a' times, talked to her to. She's real nice, pretty to. Saw you and her out walking around awhile back and thought ah leave ya alone, thought you two be goin' out by now but since your sitting here all by yourself, ah assume otherwise, am I correct bud?

I lowered my head and shook it slightly in annoyance, "You are correct." I admitted.

"So?"

"So what?"

"Why dont'cha go say hey?" Jay asked.

I'd thought if I'd tell him he'd be satisfied but with all the awkwardness that's going around, he'd probably just continue. Nevertheless, I had something that he wouldn't forget, something he said to me and I had been dying to use it against him.

"Nah bud, you gotta tell me how you heard about me first." I said in an arrogant slur.

He started to snicker, which turned into laughter after he rolled his head back. Other people who had been walking by had noticed us and starred in suspicion, then returned to their normal lives.

"Nice one bud, you got me. Ah saw you on the news, heard ya father talk about how much'a failure you were to him."

My hands slammed into my face, dragging them down, I let out a irritating groan. So that's how I was knows as? A failure? Even though I supported the bending society no one would believe me. Not in these time they wouldn't. Still, why would he approach me if so many people wanted absolutely nothing to do with me? Something about him was off, his speech was nowhere from around here, he approaches the social public enemy number one, and still he acts as if I'm a regular person.

I hadn't been an infamous person to most people. Some people knew I was here, while others had no idea. My face was on the news and I tried to stay out of the public. The police stayed away, after that little incident with Kessen, Chief Bei Fong ordered for other officers to ignore my presence here unless it became a problem. Jay kept looking both directions, as if looking for someone. Nobody walked passed anymore, strangely things got really quiet and we were the only ones on the sidewalk. In fact, we were the only ones on the street.

"So why are you here? Not to be rude but, I'm not really the social type." I said.

Jay looked back at me with a questionable look in his eyes. Soon enough the hand that rested close to me stretched out in a speed that I couldn't have seen coming. With his hand around my neck, I instantly felt what seemed to be hundreds of volts of electricity pass through my neck and throughout my body. I couldn't grunt, moan, or shout in pain at all, he had hit me so where my whole body had turned against me.

Releasing his grip I collapsed to the dirty city streets. I had been in a painful position, my head hanging off the curb while my whole body was hanging on. My face rested on the swampy metal, city gutter. All I could here was the deep evil laugh of my own twin, that and his footsteps coming closer to me.

He leaned down and put his mouth right next to my ear and whispered.

"They all want'a see ya dead bud. But am ah reasonable person, leave this fucking city, or die like the rat you are"

"Your in league with the Triads!"


	25. A Slight Interference

_Authors Note: Just a little heads up, I should have stated this more but Johnathon Porter, and the rest of his team are mastmind123's characters not mine! I don't own Legends of Korra but wouldn't that be awesome! Alright here's another chapter, enjoy!_

* * *

><p><strong>Triad House, Khai<br>**

In my understanding of what had happened earlier, I was kidnapped from a man who looked like me. As creepy as he was, he was clever. I had awoken in a chair, my arms tied behind my back, and packed in a cramped wooden room. They hadn't been big on torture, but then again I wouldn't have been conscious to feel any of it.

_Not a single day I can't go without being kidnapped, _I thought.

As pissed off as I was, I had a feeling that they wouldn't keep me here long. That's not saying they wouldn't let me go, I've handled myself in situations like this and I think I could manage. I had no idea on what these guys would do to me but knowing I came from an Equalist family, they wouldn't go good cop on me. The Triads, just a bunch of misfits who can't cope with the law so they go and do whatever the hell they want, funny that's how they think considering their faction is quickly diminishing. That's probably why they started a turf war, to forcibly recruit more people.

_Assholes,_ I thought, trying to pull free of my restraints, but no luck. There was nothing in the room other then a box, a lit candle, and hay had completely covered the floor. I squirmed even more, trying to regain the freedom of my arms, my whole chair rustled within the hay and that had probably alerted the Triad members outside the room.

"Keep it down you Equalist fuck!"

_Well I guess I'm not alone,_ I thought, still trying to shift positions.

"Where am I?" I asked, not sure who directly to.

No answer. I had expected none, but these guys weren't really the intimidating type. Not after the things I've witnessed anyways. I scooted my chair back and forth, increasing the rustling of the hay. A slot in the door shot open only to reveal a pair of furious brown eyes.

"I swear, make another fucking sound and burn every one of you limbs!"

The slot of the door slammed shut and by the way he spoke, I could tell he wasn't Jay. He seemed more hostile but less creepy. His actions were a little unorthodox but I guess that's what you get from a gang member of the Triple Threats.

"Not very hospitable are you?" I jokingly said. He seemed like the person who couldn't control his anger and would lead to his own downfall. However I was tied up and sitting in a chair so I guess I should be the one who better be careful.

The slot of the door shot open again but this time it was a pair of blue eyes and by the sound of her voice I could tell she was female.

"You'd better watch yourself asshole, your in the house of the Triads!"

"So that's what's making that horrendous odor, I thought it was the cattle." I said.

The door slammed open and the man with brown eyes stormed in, smashing his heel into my stomach. It hadn't hurt as bad because I had been expecting it and I was already flexing but it still hurt. Letting out a subtle moan, I looked up to see that girl, who was probably in her late 20's pulling away the muscle bound brown eyed man. He looked like he was in his 40's, he was built strong but not very bright, as his attack on me had been sloppy.

"What gives Pema!", The man shouted. He was answered almost immediately by the women called "Pema".

Pema shut and locked the door but I could perfectly here everything they're saying. Pema was a tall women who wore, fire bending attire. She wore a red shirt and over that was a crimson studded jack, that I had assumed to be fake rubies. Her black hair was tied in a ponytail and her black cargo pants were held up by a jewel incrusted belt, which I assumed to be once again, fake.

"Because Shu, Tak told us to keep alive! We don't want another incident you idiot!", shouted Pema

The man called Shu didn't respond. However a lot of irritating grumbling was coming from his direction. He was very tall and well built, he had worn a dark green cargo pants, a torn and sweaty khaki T-shirt. He was also bald with little bits of stubble on his chin. They hadn't been dressed as classy as the inner city Triads were but they did their job. Who knows, maybe this Tak guy was one of the inner members, Jay seemed like one of them to.

"He said "don't use bending!", he never said keep him comfortable!" Shu shouted back.

"You big dunce, he meant don't hurt him at all! Stop being so literal you stupid giant!"

It was obvious they had hated one another, being on the same side must've killed one another on the inside. Seeing as how well they communicated, they would never go anywhere with their lives. I couldn't move anywhere, being in the same position I was in earlier, rusting in the hay didn't seem to be a good plan. Even now since they new I was awake, they would probably ignore me, that was saying if Pema had taken over Shu's guarding post.

* * *

><p><strong>Pro Tak<strong>

The Triple Threats always gave one another nicknames, depending on their reputation, just as all other gangs did. There was Shinny Shin and Lightning Bolt Zolt, who had mysteriously vanished during a holdout in a hidden recruiting house. That was said after his disappearance and so far none of the Triads new his location and talk about bad timing for the start of a new turf war.

Pro Tak had gotten his nickname for defeating, what he claims to be "a whole platoon of metal benders". He was instructed to go a retrieve some counterfeit yuan's outside one of the city districts, where cargo ships would usually go and unload their possessions. Luckily for him he had been an earth bender so fighting off the metal bending police force, would be an even match. Although he claims to have killed them all, all that mattered was that he came back with more then 50,000 counterfeit yuan's which could not be told from the real thing.

Tak had been sitting at his desk, enjoying a nice glass of litchi juice and not enjoying reading people bitch about their which was their turf. He had received Intel that the Red Monsoon Triad's gang was getting ready for an all out attack and it was his duty to make sure that didn't happen by sending out new strategic defense reports. This was more of a pain then he imagined. He was more the fighting and assault type of person, not sitting behind a desk.

Pro Tak had on a pressed grey suit but wore in unprofessionally. He wore the suit unbuttoned and his collar was flipped upward, the usual Triad style. Wearing grey matching pants and a black belt, nobody ever assumed he would be with the Triads but merely a lone business man. Some claimed that since there was no metal bender retreated to report Tak's appearance, that he had in fact killed them all but others said he lied about the numbers. The bodies were never found.

His most prized possession was a 14 karat gold watch that he had retrieved at the same mission from one of the captain's of the cargo ship. His watch however hadn't been the only jewelry he wore. A ruby incrusted ring, rested nicely on his pinky finger and a classy gold chain hung around his neck. He had brown hair which had been mostly covered by a black Cordoba.

His office was decorated quiet nicely. A mahogany table, paintings of Republic City, and a window that has a perfect view of Avatar Aang Memorial Island. Red gilded tapestries hung from the walls, with the Triad leader's name on it.

Just as his was about to finish his report, Shu had entered the room.

"Sir, the Equalist kid is awake. What do you want me to do?" He said. His bulky voice, disturbing Tak's concentration.

"That's Jay's problem, I couldn't give more of a shit about this kid then you do!" Tak barked.

"But sir, he's an Equalist. They're bad." Shu muttered.

Tak let out a long, dissatisfied sigh, "Shu, ya know we're Triads right?"

"Uh.. yea."

"There's no such thing as good and bad when your already workin' for the enemy you idiot!" Tak shouted.

"Uh, sorry sir but Jay thought you might've wanted to know. So uh. What'a we do?"

"You giant lug, it wasn't even my..", Tak couldn't stress to Shu that this wasn't even his plan. Tak tried hard not to send a stone through Shu's incompetent brain so instead he decided to follow, since there was no way of reasoning with him. Violently shoving passed Shu, they both walked out, meeting up with the others.

* * *

><p><strong>Khai<strong>

They had moved me from the small room I had been in, to the middle of the room. The whole building had been a barn, which answered the question of the stench of cattle but none had been in there. The barn had been emptied all along but the stench had been left behind.

Pema had been watching over me from the top loft in the barn accessible from only a single ladder. Being the fire bender she is, she could probably lower herself down, shooting fire out of his fists that acted like jets.

"So what exactly am I here for?" I asked politely, hoping to receive some answer.

"Shut up!" Pema yelled back.

I tried to shrug but since my hands were tied behind my back, it didn't look so good. I guess trying to be polite wasn't an option here. I still saw no sign of Jay, who I still had a bone to pick with.

"So how long you've been with these assholes?" I asked. She was pissed off now, sending off a burst of fire going right by my head. Nearly singing some of my hair but the thing was that I didn't see them a threat at all. Not the smartest thing to do, underestimate an enemy but something was off with them. They lacked cooperation.

Actually she was more helpful then threatening. The fireball she through had passed closely behind me but enough to catch a bit of the rope that tied my hands. It hadn't been all the way through but enough for me to pull it apart. I just needed to wait to where I wasn't a sitting target, she had her eyes locked on mine. empty stables, surrounded me, and I'm guessing the small closest like room I had been in was where the farmers put their tools. Other then the mounds of hay, the room was completely deserted.

The front doors to the barn began to open and in front was an unknown man, that I had guess had been Tak, followed by Shu who was towering over him from behind.

"So this is the guy? Doesn't look so tough, why the hell do we hav'em?", Tak asked.

Before anyone could answer I spoke out, "Because some asshole who looks like me, wants me dead but he said he's a reasonable person and was going to let me go. Apparently that didn't happen, Jay was it?"

All it took was a short flick of Tak's wrist, and I still didn't see it coming. The stone tore through the air like a knife on butter, not even slowing down. Passing by seconds later, it connected with my left knee The . Sending off ripples of pain throughout my body, I wasn't able to hide the pain. I hunched over, letting out a single grunt of pain, which had left a permanent smile on Tak's face.

"Watch yourself fucker, your in the house of the Triads now! Do you know who I am? What I've done?" Tak asked.

I didn't answer. There was no point in getting hurt like that again, the pain hadn't stopped but was slowing down. Tak bent down, putting one of his polished brown shoes on my injured knee.

_Dammit, this hurts!_, my mind was drowning in pain. Even as Tak leaned in, he could see the pain that hid itself within my eyes.

"What? Silence? Cat got your tongue? Well then we'll just have to break your will now won't we? You will address me as Pro Tak, and anything you say will be attached to your life, so once again, watch yourself!"

A small noise made its way from under my breath, Tak's shoe had been purposefully digging in to my wound. I was just lucky the small stone hadn't been there. After releasing his stance, he turned back to Pema.

"Where the hell is Jay? I don't wasn't some Equalist asshole tied up in my barn!" Tak barked.

"I don't know, Pro. He said he would come back, I'm not sure where he's off to." Pema replied, it was obvious she was holding in her fear of Tak.

_Good for nothing, prick_, Tak thought. He started his way back to me, hands in his pocket, and pretending to be calm. However I had noticed a few bullets of sweat, running down his forehead, and it hadn't been because of the heat. It was fairly cool in here.

"Maybe we should ransom him back to his father? And if he doesn't respond we could send him back, piece by piece." Shu took quiet a lot of pride in himself, for thinking of such a plan but it was quickly shot down.

"Idiot, you heard his father over the radio, he doesn't want him! Why the hell would a ransom work?", Pema asked.

"Well you come up with a plan, self absorbed bitch!" Shu exclaimed.

Their arguing caused a great headache for Tak, constantly rubbing his head as if he had a fever. He was definitely stressed beyond recovering to his calm state, after a quick glance at me he turned around to the others. Stamping his foot on the ground he sent of two columns of stone, when reappeared above ground, slammed into Pema and Yu's chests, sending them back into the side of the barn.

"Shut up! For one fucking second would you to stop fighting and let me deal with this guy! Jay is nowhere in sight, once again, and I don't need the both of your bitching to add onto my stress, so shut the fuck up!" Tak's face was steaming, his voice was so loud it had almost cracked.

However besides the fear struck dead in Pema and Shu's heart, it had also sent a spike of fear through mine as well. Although I hadn't been impressed much with these pitiful little gangs throughout the city, my opinion for them was about to change. Pema and Shu, brushed themselves off. Struck with dead silence and fear in their eyes, they remained calm with one another.

"So Tak, since Jay isn't obviously showing up, wouldn't it be in your best interest just to let me go? You don't have a problem with me and keeping me here's only putting on a lot of stress for you so wouldn't be better just to let me go." I asked.

Tak looked back at me with the most hysterical look in his eye. I could feel them piercing through mine.

"You call me Pro Tak, and I'm sick of your disrespect! Your right, I have no need for you.. time to die."

Tak pulled up a slab of stone from the ground, one of which worms and bits of dirt had been falling from and launched it at me. My heart raced, my blood sped up, and I knew that I was going to die if something didn't happen. Closer and closer by the second, I would be crushed instantly with my brains covering the hay floor. Suddenly, a tearing sound blasted through the air, and soon the slab of stone was reduced to mere pebbles and dust.

Debris hit the side of my face, along with a nice coating of dust. My life was sparred but only in the way that Jay had destroyed the boulder with his lightning. A course of blue flickering lightning retracted back into his finger tips. As annoyed as he looked, his quickly became calm but not when he spoke to the rest of the Triads.

"Idiots, ah told you not to use bendin'!" Shouted Jay. "Mah apologies Khai, ah hadn't instructed them to do this to ya but in a sense, you must know how incompetence feels right?"

"Go to hell you lying prick!" I exclaimed.

He laughed as his brushed the remaining rubble off my shoulder. How I would loved to have snapped his arm but not wasn't the time. I would have preferred it to be a non bender. So far Shu hadn't shown any signs of bending at all, he could've been hiding it or he wasn't one. Either way, I had picked out my target,

"Now Khai, let's save that hatred for ya execution alright? I know I'd said ah would letch'ya go but, things change. Emotions grow and bonds are strained. I'm talking about our bond Khai."

"What the fuck are you talking about, what have I done to you?"

Now his eyes had been the only thing that hadn't matched mine but I could tell I had stirred up a lot of painful memories in him. His face tensed and he sighed, trying not to keep anger within himself.

"The one person in this damned city and ah gotta look like ya? Your a wanted dead, Khai. So many people hate you, for abandoning the Equalists, and so many people hate you here because ya were one of'em. Now ah can barely go out without getting mistaken for ya, and I constantly have those damn metal benders on mah tail. And workin' for the Triple Threats, well.. that's not gonna work not won't it? Ah got people starin' death in my face because they can't get yours out of theirs. I can barely get a cup of fuckin' coffee without havin' to be interrogated first, it's terrible!" Jay said furiously.

_Those people. All their faces and their hatred is towards me. What am I worth anymore? _My head was betraying me. The force upon depression made my blood boil. It was true though, ever since I've arrived here my life's been nothing but hell. Was I really to blame? I was never on their side, the Equalists? Bastards, all of them! Even some of the metal benders hated me. I will prove to them I'm on their side. Even if that meant to force it upon them.

My blood ran icy cold through my veins, my hatred towards Jay grew so much I had to keep myself from trembling. I didn't know how to prove myself to people that I was good but taking out a member of the Triple Threats must be a start. Or it could show people the violent part of me, which was one of my greatest fears, final judgement.

My head hung, and from my position I was in I could hear Jay snickering get closer to me.

"What's the matter bud? Afraid ya might prove that you're just'a truer demon then you could imagine? Your pathetic!" Jay spat his last words onto my shoes.

His head was close to mine but his ranting wasn't even close to being finished.

"And the worst part of it all is that your..."

Before he could finish I had slammed the top of my head into his chin. My head was numb but anger was my medicine. A thin trickle of blood ran in between my eyes and started down my noes. My blood lust thickened and I struggled even more in my chair, nearly tipping it over. I wanted to explode, my blood turned from ice to what seemed to be fire.

"You call me a demon, I show you hell! I don't care what others think of me, I WILL PROVE THEM WRONG! Your opinion doesn't matter, what are you compared to me? The amount innocent people you've killed doesn't even compare to my life! And I swear if you do anything to affect my life or those it involves, I'll fucking kill you!" I shouted.

My anger was overwhelming, half of the stuff I had said had just come out without even knowing. It felt like someone else had shouted it from inside me.

"Interesting choices of words there bud, threatening me when ya claim your not that type of person. As for the "killing the innocent" remark, it's either kill or be killed, use or be used Khai. Only the strong survive. No matter though, after ya public execution, no one will be mistaken us again. Only one of us will live on Khai."

"I intend to." I said, a bitter darkness had entered my voice. Sometimes I didn't even know who I was anymore.

"Funny, ya don't even have your sword anymore and ya act like you have'a chance." Jay replied.

Jay turned around, signaling for Shu. My chance at freedom was coming, soon I would fight him and I can promise myself I would win. No matter how many bones I break. I assumed Shu was coming to hoist me over his shoulder like he did when he brought me out of the tool shed. He may be strong but still, everyone has a weak spot.

He barely struggled to pick me up. His grasp wasn't on me but the chair only. I had act now or else it would be to late, however I'd knew I'd regret it. With my face starring towards the ground, my sight was directly behind him. I tugged on my restraints, pulling harder I could feel the rope dig deep into my wrists but I could feel the fiber start to tear.

My next advantage was unclear but it seemed to be on the enemies side. I fought free, still hanging onto the ropes that had once been around my wrists, I dropped backwards. Shu was to slow to move, he probably hadn't expected it. I dropped back with my feet digging into his back and my hands using my restraints as a garrote. Since I hadn't been on the ground I pushed my feet deeper into his back, making me pull harder on the rope. Shu choked and gasped for air, saliva sputtered from his mouth.

Everybody turned around to see the problem. Pro Tak was the first to speak.

"Shu!"

"Dammit Shu!" Exclaimed Pema

Jay was the only one that smiled, _Khai, ah've underestimate_ you.

Now I didn't really want to kill Shu. For a large guy, he seemed misunderstood and didn't really know where his life was going. Looking past his shoulder, I could plainly see Jay smiling, he was basically laughing at me.

_"Only the strongest survive?" Jay, you should've never messed with me!_


	26. Saints and Sinners

_Authors note: The connected stories of this and mastermind123's story do take place according to episodes of Legend Of Korra (which I don't own), so we can get some information correct. This story itself takes place during the episode "The Voice In The Night", yea were behind but it doesn't matter, you still got the show to watch don't ya? Well anyways enjoy my longest chapter ever!_

* * *

><p><strong>Triple Threats<strong>

Shu choked and begged for air but the second I'd let up, would be the last second of my life. Shu sputtered words, which nobody could officially make out but I would guess it was for assistance. The stammering and constant gasps for air had given the notice that he was in great pain, that and his face turning a bright red color. Eventually it started to turn a dark purple and I was worried that I would loose my only defense before I had a chance to make my escape. I loosened my grip, just enough for him to get in a few breaths of air.

The rope had dug into my skin, causing great irritation. Some parts had started to bleed and urged my to let up but I knew If I did that, it would be his hands around _my_ neck.

"Help. Please!" He barked. The last part of the word sent bullets of saliva out of his mouth. I could feel his heat intensify and burst through his face, which was extremely violet. He kept staggering back and forth, I was afraid he would just turn around but he knew he live much longer if he did so.

"Try anything funny or you'll be out of air. Permanently." I whispered into his ear. If the rest of the Triple Threats knew I needed him they would act fast. "You can live or die, just don't struggle. Your choice."

He cooperated most of the time but his grip around the rope didn't ease up. He tugged but I tugged harder. I would imagine that he was getting very light headed. What surprised me the most was the neither, Tak, Pema, or Shu did nothing. They stood completely still with a blank look on his face, except for Jay would was basically laughing to himself.

"Very persistent Khai, kill ah man to get what'ya want. Didn't you say you were better then that?" Jay said, folding his hands comfortably in his pockets.

_Damn you!_, I was enraged with him. My heart raced just to keep up with the adrenaline that rushed through my body. Unlike Jun's purpose for wanting me dead, his seemed rather more social then anything. Breaking down a man on the inside to just get him to crack up on the out.

"I say we let'em die. He was useless anyway." Pema suggested.

Shu's final breathes had turned towards Tak, who had been thinking the same thing as Pema.

"Please. T-ak!" Shu choked on his last words as his final conscious breathes turned into a final sweep of air. Pro Tak didn't say a thing but only watched as Jay gained recovered from his laughing fit.

Bringing up his fingers he did the last thing, I'd expected him to do. Lightning rung out of his fingers, coiling around his body like a snake but it didn't have any effect on him. He lashed around, blasting the bolts of cold blooded fire outward to Shu, piercing his body. He had tried to go right through him and into me.

The next few moments felt like seconds as I jumped backward, nearly avoiding the nasty shock. Shu wasn't so lucky, as the lightning had passed through his heart, killing him without a sound. I watched horrified as one of the Triads, murdered his own in cold blood. Shu now lie dead on the floor and Jay's attention was on me.

"Should'a done that years ago." He said with a mild taunt in his speech.

Tak and Pema looked surprised that Shu had actually been dead. It was what Pema had wanted for a long time but she couldn't have believed it was really done. Tak on the other hand was rather angry. Sure he hated Shu but he would never allow for another less important member of the Triads to kill one of their own.

"Don't go over your head Jay! Remember that I'm the leader here!" Tak shouted.

"Of Course Pro, Ah was just havin' fun is all." Jay replied innocently.

Pro Tak didn't say anything because he couldn't. He felt weak that someone else like Jay had taken a great amount of control of the situation, bringing a random man in without his knowing, showing up late, and now killing one of his own? No. Tak felt a sudden weakness in both himself and his bond with Jay.

Jay refocused himself on me. I was still on my back after the blast, which I had still felt even after jumping off Shu.

"No more meat shields Khai, just ah lone Equalist and three benders." Jay pulled out another string of lightning from his fingers, my heart raced again. "I change mah mind, your execution starts now!"

The shot went off but I had already scrambled to my feet. The chain of devastating lightning missed me by centimeters but sent off a charge that forced me into a huge pile of hay. He hadn't let up, still keeping his charge, lightning once again strained the energy within his chi paths.

"Wait!" Tak barked.

Jay's lightning slowly dissolved back into his finger and turned faced Pro Tak.

"Like I said Jay, your in over your head. I'm leading this damn thing here and I' m not letting you get to make these decisions!" Tak shouted. Jay sent out a smug little grin over to Tak, knowing what exactly he was going through. He shrugged and turned back, sweeping the lint off of his pressed suit, only to have Pema take his place.

"Pema, burn the fucker." Tak ordered. Hearing the word burn in a place that was filled with flammable material, such as hay, didn't go right with me. If it meant anything I had to try my best to survive, even if that meant crawling through the material itself. Before I knew it, I was already half way through the hay mound.

Pema nodded but didn't go easy. Even from inside the hay mound, I could feel the warmth of the blasts she through. Ball after ball of flames, I could feel the fire racing towards me, nipping at my feet. The heat was intense, as if crawling through hell itself and having the devil breathe down the back of my neck.

I was more worried then angry. Being in my position and having hatred consume me, wouldn't be wise. Although even without it, I still didn't know where I was going. It was hard suppressing it. Not after all the years I cowardly let it build up.

"Come on Equalist! You can't run forever! You feelin' light headed? Need air? This whole barns coming up in flames and your going down with it!" Pema shouted, shooting streams of fire wilder then ever.

Now that she mentioned it, the air was getting thin. Using her own bending to suffocate me was a great strategy, especially in the position I was in. However, she was still shouting, cursing, throwing insults left and right until they hit me right in the middle. If she stayed in here any longer, her arrogance would get the best of her.

My hands dug harder through nothing but pure hay, that said until I reached a dead end.

_Fuck!_, cursing to myself because I had hit the edge of the barn. I had no choice but to turn another direction, the fire still encasing me in like a flammable coffin. Barreling out of the hay I had fallen right back into the barn but at a different location. Digging through the hay was risky but had bought me some valuable time.

Our lines of sight had been broken but my position was no better then the first. I sat upright against an unburned stable door that I had opened for cover. The whole barn was up in flames but not enough to actually bring it down. Soon however, it would get there. Burning embers flew upwards, singing anything they touched. Some had even fallen onto me, causing me to panic and swat at my arm numerous times, as if I myself was on fire.

"Where are you Equalist! There's only one door in here and your not getting through. Not until I see your flesh being torn away by the flames!" Pema shouted again, as if she had stopped. Her constant cursing was annoying. She hadn't even coming up with anything good anymore just "Damn you" this and "Fuckin" Equalist that.

By the way her voice was sounding, she was tired and loosing strength. More embers dripped onto my clothing from above. Swatting them off wasn't the problem, avoiding the falling upper loft was another story. I dove out of the way just in time for the collapsing upper level to smash the stable I was hiding behind. More fire erupted and sent out a drastic shock wave that made everything seem 20 degrees hotter.

_Son of a! _Looking up, I saw that I had dove right in the line of sight for Pema when I avoided the falling loft. I had only a brief glance at her and her surroundings before I got to my feet. Running behind another hay pile. My lungs burned, not from exhaustion but from the lack of oxygen.

Nearly on my back I stomped my shoe on the ground, for the bottom had been on fire. Wooden chips and debris fell from the ceiling, causing more flames to erupt.

"Come on! Fight! Let's see your strength!" _  
><em>

I had to ignore her. Her outbursts were nothing more then distractions trying to get me off guard. However despite the situation we were both in, I had no choice but to ignore her.

A large crackling led to a bunch of tiny flaming splinters to fall onto my shoulder. I would have just patted out the fire but that was before a heard the loud cracks above. To my complete horror, I watched as the support beam above had been chewed up by the flames and was made unstable.

Soon it rocked. Back and forth it turned as if loosing itself to fall but the fire had dissolved it to the point where its name "support beam" had become ironic. It broke in two. It came crashing down, bringing down a stream of fire with it. I hadn't been so lucky this time. A more serious blast had shot me out into the open, however I had some time to get out of the way of the falling beam.

Disoriented, massively bruised, and running out of air. The only way I knew Pema was in here, was the sound of her coughing. The smoke lowered closer to the ground, smothering anything it touched in a thick layer of black ash. My face was halfway coated with the stuff. Being out in the opened I had noticed something about our locations, a large lake of fire had separated us and climbed itself onto the walls on the barn.

The black musk that filtered the air made it almost impossible for anyone to see. However being on the ground I could plainly see Pema still throwing fire.

"This is ridiculous, I'm not going to stay here and possibly kill myself just to watch you burn!" Pema reduced the flames from her fingertips until they died out completely and started for the door. "Fuck it, I'm out!"

My eyes widened in horror as her hand touched that barn door. "No Pema wait!" I jumped to my feet, feeling the burns that had been imprinted on my body begin to ache. Out of pure pain I fell to one knee, weak in fight, air, and spirit to carry on. My tongue felt like nothing more then a dry piece of raw meat.

* * *

><p><strong>The Back Draft<br>**

As the door to the barn was forced open, Pema was swallowed up by a gulf of flames, tearing apart her skin like it was nothing but paper. Her ideal of my death was now hers. As she had opened the front door, a gush of oxygen had been reintroduced to the flames, resulting in a combustion like state, blowing apart anything in a certain radius. In this case, Pema was the unlucky victim.

Her screams were deafened within the explosion. I wasn't able to tell if she had been in one piece when the explosion happened but I doubted it. Chunks of wooden and burning straw had been sent flying, nearly leaving me with a third degree burn, if crossed across my body. Lucky for me I had been lying down so the chances of that were slim to none.

For me, it had been an advantage in two ways. Yes Pema was gone but the effect of the blast had shook the entire barn. The front door was gone because of the blast and the windows had been blown out, causing the smoke to rush out with it. With my breathing chances at a better level I had more time to look for an escape.

I could have used the windows for an escape but they had been barricade by either a wall of fire or something solid was in the way and on fire. I crawled low to save what air I had left and trying to avoid falling panels at the same time. The barn shook, and more support beams had began to fall, it would not hold for much longer.

I nearly stumbled, trying to move to the back of the barn where there wasn't any fire, turned out to be more of an hassle then expected. Ducking under support beams that had fallen, and narrowly avoiding explosion that rained fire down on me, from the lofts above had proved to be my greatest challenge.

One support beam had fallen but in a weird way. One end was stuck, still able to hold on as its other end was withered away by the up roaring flames. It acted as a battering ram when it fell, smashing a thin whole in the back of the barn.

It reacted with a small back draft, erupting in more flames but none that would turn out to be as hostile as it did to Pema. I raced over to the whole, ignoring the burning sensation that scared my leg. Air was limited and it made me light headed, which probably was the cause for Pema to eventually leave.

The whole in the wall was thin but on the other side I could see the woods, engulfing the backyard of what I assumed to be a farm. The edges of the whole had been red hot, poking at me as if I had been a well cooked piece of meet. They left devastating marks on my chest but nevertheless, I pulled free, gasping and choking for the new air the refilled my lungs.

_Yes fresh air!_ Throwing myself onto the ground I let the cool night time sky refresh my body, as it felt like the largest ice pack when the cool air brushed against my burns. I panted heavily, letting my heart slow down seem liked the hardest thing to do in this situation. My body cooled under the night, I had prayed for my life to be spared, and my prayers were answered.

* * *

><p><strong>Pro Tak and Jay<strong>

The two mischievous Triads starred silently in the farmhouse as they watched their barn burn to the ground. As the house fell into itself it had shot out one last ring of fire, as the collapsed ceiling tiles had let in more oxygen from above.**  
><strong>

Fire rose from the fallen barn and embers crackled onto the ground, much of the grass had turned black from the fire or the layer of ash. The two Triads stood without movement, Jay stood with a arrogant grin on his face while Tak's showed fear. Not worrisome fear of caring about Pema's safety, nor a fear of concern for the money value lost from the barn but of the insane destruction that had been caused. The flames that had risen from that barn had terrified him.

"Do ya see her"

"No"

A quick silence was created as they watched through the back window.

"What about him?"

"No"

Tak bit his lower lip, worrying about the destruction of the wreckage, until the a slight pain had urged him to stop. Jay guzzled down a quick shot of alcohol and turned towards Tak.

"Hey, Pro. We should get'a goin'. The MB's will be here any sec."

Tak snapped out of his fearful stationary state and nodded in agreement. "Yes but first get what we need, there's a few papers up in my office I need to get."

"Ah already know what to bring for mahself. Take ya time Pro Tak, just don't take it all."

* * *

><p><strong>Khai<strong>

I had already begun making my way towards the house. I would've assumed that the fire would had been enough of a distraction for me to move along the edge of the farm unnoticed. The farm house was impressive in size but weak in texture. It made primarily made up of wood, with stone structuring at some parts. The back porch was massive, I stood under it starring above to make sure no one was there.

Just a few tables and minor back porch decorations had been set up. Decorative plants and a bare wooden picnic table had been above. As I walked up the stairs, I had made out more marking that had been carved into the table. Just Triad trash curses and obscenities that didn't belong. There was the logo of the Triple Threats and the words "Fire Benders Rule!" also carved within.

The inside was worse then the out. A bare room, couches, and a radio that didn't even work. The walls had holes and scorch marks from previous issues.

In all honesty, the reason I was still here was for my sword. I could have just slipped by the side of the house, use the night for cover but I really wanted it back. However I would be lying if I said that was all I wanted. I promised myself if I found my sword, I would just leave but if I were to see Tak or Jay on the way, I would have to improvise.

The house was huge and surprisingly it looked like it had just been the four of them. Well, now there was two. I journeyed down the hallway, the walls were bare and looked like they had been under construction. Paints tarps and clear, plastic sheets hung from the walls.

I walked further on, my heartbeat growing with each footstep I took. Climbing a few step, I turned another hallway where my expectations were still at a low.

Mugs, cups, wrappers, and food had scattered the halls. This place looked just the way it smelled, like shit. I hadn't expected much out of the Triple Threats, let alone cleanliness.

That house shook, dust and rubble fell from the ceiling like rain, coating my shirt.

_What the hell?_ I thought, moving into the nearest doorway for some cover. It had turned out to be an empty closet but served the same purpose of stealth. I inched the door open, starring into a messy hallway but no signs of trouble.

The rumble that had shaken the house was gone but I could hear voices, one of them I could clearly make out to be Pro Tak but the other.. well it wasn't Jay.

* * *

><p><strong>Pro Tak and Guest<strong>

Tak stood with his jaw to the ground as he starred at the collapsed wall. His blood boiled and his mind was on stress overload.

Using his earth bending he created another sheet of stone that he pulled from the ground outside. He then fixed it in place, ceiling off the night time sky and the black gust of smoke that had been entering.

"Quit fooling around Tak, we need to talk."

Finishing up his bending motions the wall fixed perfectly in place, however it plainly stood out.

"Yu! Uh, wha- what's going on?" Tak asked.

The brown-cloaked pridesmen starred furiously at him, pacing slowly towards him until he was an arms length away.

"You know exactly why I'm here, Tak. What did you see?" Yu said angrily, his voice a bit muffled.

Tak swallowed hard. As "strong" as Tak claims he is, right now he was looking extremely weak. He said to sweat, pits of sweat began to form underneath his arms, and his voice had gotten wheezy.

"Well. I. Uh. You see there-"

"What did you see at Amon's damn revelation meeting! I sent you because you claimed to have the skill necessary! Don't fucking tell me you were lying!" Yu voice was as dark as ever, sending multiple chills down Tak's spine.

Tak began to stutter. Sweat ran down his forehead like it was their job. He shivered and quaked but said no answer that Yu could make out. Yu shot forward, launching out his hand, he grabbed Tak by the neck and slammed him against the wall, nearly blowing it out the other side. This was without the straightening of his back.

"I may be an old man Tak but don't take me for granted. I could snap your neck in seconds, it wold be easy! Like breaking a toothpick. So tell me, what was Amon doing?"

Yu loosened his grip a bit so that Tak could speak.

"We-well ya see." Tak stopped. Taking in a large stream of air and releasing it through his mouth, he continued. "When me and my associates had arrived, the whole place was in chaos! Steam, smoke, you name it but it was rising fast and people were screaming as they ran out. Whatever had happened, you can bet Amon wouldn't have shown himself again that night."

Amon thought to himself. His plan was ruined but he could probably steal Tak's excuse. He dropped Tak to the floor, the coward landing on his ass like scared, whimpering dog.

"Besides, why couldn't you do it yourself, sneaking in and all that? And Isn't it true you have a man on the inside?" Tak asked.

Yu's eyes were cold, just like his heart but there was great power in his voice.

"My skills involve great power and elite assault tactics, not some cowardly hide and seek game. I don't do stealth." Yu took the time to look out the window to notice the burning barn, which had been dying out. "And I'm assuming neither is yours."

"And who I associate with, does not concern you." Yu finished.

Yu had been thinking about the one informant who acted like their leader, Jun. He had barely seen him yet Admiral Geming took orders from him like a dog to his master. Now Yu had been distrusting them both, now that everyone else had been on some manhunt for a kid.

"Right sir, I'm sorry, uh sir. Yes sir." Tak said, managing to get his own tongue to produce the words. Yu continued to pick him up by the throat, this time his voice was more insane then ever.

"Let's not forget the little deal we made. I gave you your title by taking out those metal benders, in exchange for your assistance when need. Fail me again and this time it will be your fucking life!" Yu said, dropping him immediately.

Using his bending, Yu had destroyed the wall that Tak had broken, disappearing within the cool darkness.

* * *

><p><strong>Khai<strong>

My muscles cramped up. Knowing that The Pride had been in league with the Triple Threats had scarred the shit out of me. I had barely survived the first one and I technically hadn't killed him.

As much as I wanted to kill Mao for nearly killing Ruan, I was in no position to fight. I opened the closet door an inch more only to have shut it all the way. I saw Jay who had been leaning against Tak's office door. I had guessed he heard everything and by the smug look of his face, him and I had the same thought.

Pro Tak was a fake, and Jay knew it. Opening the door a little bit more I saw that Jay had entered. I didn't get a good look at him but i did see a weapon of some kind. I opened the door and walked out, pressing my back against the wall closest to Tak's office, where Jay had once been, I peaked inside.

"Jay where the hell have you been!" Tak said pretending to have ignored the whole last 10 minutes that had passed.

"So. Your ah fake?" Jay said.

I moved my head closer to the door, I now saw Jay wielding my sword in his hands. I bit my tongue. My blood started to boil once more and I couldn't have been more furious at him.

"Dammit Jay, you have no right to-"

Before he could even speak, his chest tore apart, leaving huge gaping tear. Blood spattered across the wall, leaving behind a dark crimson stain that would not come off. Tak would have probably been able to have stopped it but Jay's electrical ability had given him a huge advantage. By sending mild volts of lightning through the blade, he managed to increase the sword, when swung it sent off an electrical like slash, killing Tak without Jay having to get close to him.

"Ah don't take orders from fakes" Jay said, cleaning his blade on Tak's blood-soaked suit.

He turned around, his eyes locked on mine.

_Shit, waited to long! _I thought. I turned and darted down the hallway. Followed by an explosion from the room, I knew that he was following me. I could hear the lightning, discharging from his finger. He sent of wave after wave of attacks. They smash through wall after wall, crumbling pillars, and starting mild fires on curtains. If I didn't leave soon, the whole house would fall.

"Nice bud, ah'd knew ya make it out! Ironic to die by ya own sword though, eh Khai?" Jay shouted.

Barreling down the hall, I opened door, closets, and small cupboards. All had been clean out. I was thinking about sneaking my way out but every time I opened a door, a lightning bolt would be there, inches from my face.

Jay let out a lightning pulse so powerful it had short circuited most of the lightning in the house. The explosion of the attack had sent out a heat wave powerful it had burned my cheek. I had gotten to the stair that had rounded the corner to the lower level. It had given me some cover.

I had made myself downstairs and had now been wandering the giant house. Catching my breath, I breathed in slowly to slow down my heart rate which had been hammering itself against my chest. Soon enough it went right back up. Jay came around the corner, swinging widely with my sword.

His inexperience with the weapon was humorous. It lead to many cuts and scratches on the walls, shredded curtains and pain tarps, and I was afraid that he would actually break it. He should have stuck with his lightning. I had to make my move.

He swung low then high then low again, continuing with his pattern as if he would slice me in half. My father had taught me basic hand to hand trick resulting with the nerves of human body, resulting in high levels of pain but I needed an opening.

Jay swung low, letting out a startled grunt. I swooped him, the jabs I had sent to him were fierce. I had hit pressure points at near perfect accuracy but my result were horrifying. After I had hit the first one Jay stopped. At first I felt like I had even killed, it had been a terrifying experience.

Jay dropped to ground without a single movement more. My heart raced, starring at my hands I was horrified what I had done. Jay began to laugh widely, almost at an insane way, it made my skin crawl.

"Like father like son, huh bud? Congratz man, you've officially proven yaself ah monster like ya father. Like your whole damned kind!"

My hands begun to shake, and I instantly felt sick. Those pressure points that my father had taught me when I was young, weren't pressure point strikes at all. He had taught me chi blocks, and I had used them against Jay. As horrified as I was, my fury still increased. I had vowed never to use it but here a was demonstrating it for the first time and I get it done almost perfectly, I hated myself for it.

"Your the same monster, as all you chi blockers are!", Jay grunted, being in the frozen state he was in, it had been very uncomfortable. He began to chuckle once more, however my attention was still on what I had done. "If ya can't, no one can is that right! Is that right you fucking coward! Nothing but a monster, that's what you are!"

My eyes shot up. Jay could see the hatred in my face and for that, his grin lowered. I started over to him, causing him to flinch but I only grabbed what was mine, my sword.

Jay grew annoyed, he saw that I had suppressed the hateful things he had said. It was my turn to tell this prick a thing or two.

"A monster? You see me as a monster? If I was a monster I would've snapped Shu's neck, If I was a monster I wouldn't have tried to warn Pema about her caustic death, If I was a fucking monster, you head would be off your pathetic shoulders!" I got closer to him kneeling down to about eye level, he was perfectly silent. "You killed them all, you killed Shu, Pema, and Tak and you dare call me some monster? I regret it all yes, I hate Equalists, I hate my family, and I hate Amon but I do not just go around looking for murder like you do!  
>You see yourself as such a fucking shepherd, yet you butcher your own sheep and laugh about it. Your far from a saint Jay, live with the fact that your the monster." I stood up.<p>

Letting out the anger felt good but there was still more locked up. Lucky for me the sword still had its sling, so it was around my back in seconds. I turned around only to have heard Jay's voice, he wasn't laughing anymore, but enraged as I was. My words had gotten to him.

"So what? In all your glory ya going spare mah life? Your weak Khai! Only the strongest survive!"

I stopped at the entrance of the bare room. I looked back one finale time. "I don't play the role of judge, jury, and executor. I'll let the MB's take care of that."

Jay cursed widely, pulling anything he could find from his mouth. He was loosing it and was being hysterical.

"Who do ya think'ya are Khai? Some sort of damn saint? Don't ya fucking leave wer not done yet! Get the fuck back here, ya prick!"

As much as I regretted leaving him alive, it was the right thing to do. Hatred was immoral but aren't we all? That's how we all think and live our lives and there's nothing we can do to avoid it. This small step toward morality I took, was the first of many.

* * *

><p><strong>Khai (Later that<strong> **night) **

I had walked on that night. My flash bare and burned and the cool breeze didn't help as much as it did then. Leaving Jay for the Metal Benders was the hardest thing I could do but it was right.

I stumbled down the cold side walk of the deserted Republic City. Whatever had happened since my fight against Jun was acting up. Citizens ran to their own houses and locked their doors. I could actually here the locks shut and for a while I blamed myself. Then I thought about the curfew I had heard over the radio, that the council had been planning but not officially put it in affect.

There were other things to. Announcements of Councilmen Tarlok's Anti-Equalist task force was in the process of being made and they wanted the Avatar to join. However many journalists have announced that she hadn't been interested. There had been a rumor of Amon having the ability to take away a persons bending.

It seemed as if I had a boulder swung over my back. The injuries I had suffered had affected my head. I had debated about just dropping my sword but then again fighting Jay for it would've been a waste of time.

"Khai, Khai is that you?"

Now I was hearing things. It was probably a metal bender wanting my death, seemed like everyone else did. My vision was blurred and my hearing deafened, my legs quickly getting weak, I fell to me knees. I had suffered so much in the past few days, I could barely stand.

"Khai! I'm coming hold on! Khai? Khai stay with me!"

I was soon on my back. I could feel the familiar voice tugging away at my body. Hauling me away. My world swayed as I eventually began to black out, the last thing I ever saw was my body rising towards the sky.

* * *

><p><strong>Apartment 236<strong>

When I had eventually come to, I was laying shirtless on a bed. I began to breath hard but didn't dare move. I looked around the room to see if their was anything familiar. I thought it had been Porter who brought me back to the compound but I'd doubt he would be the one to take off my shirt. It had only been heavily bruised. Mild burns but nothing worth the trouble to go to. The smoke in my lungs had probably cut off my circulation, causing me to pass out.

My chest wall fifty percent purple an black. The scars and bruises that I caused myself had been soaked in a warm moist cloth and others had been patched up with bandages. I began to cough widely, feeling though a lung was about to pop out at any moment. The sounds of my coughs caused footsteps to stir in the next room, I had caught someone's attention.

I slowly turned my head, only to see Kya running up to me, putting a warm cloth along my head.

"Kya?" I said slowly, my head pounded as I tried to lift myself up.

"Whoa now, just lay down and let me take care of you. You've been beaten up pretty hard." She said rubbing my forehead.

She wore water tribe clothing, her long beautiful brushed against my cheek as she leaned in to dab my forehead with the soaked cloth. I couldn't help but blush. She giggled a bit, my face went red instantly hoping she hadn't noticed but it was obvious she did.

"My spirits, what the hell happened to you Khai?" Kya said.

"It's a very long story, I wouldn't want you to feel bad for me." I replied.

_Idiot, what the hell, just talk to_ her! My mind was in an uproar, I wanted to but it just seemed weird. Especially appearing i a room with her with my shirt off. I attempted to sit up.

Kya put her gentle hands on my chest, pushing slightly to get me to lie down. "Then it's going to be a very long night. Please tell me, so I won't have to worry.

I chuckled a bit, trying to recall every incident I could that had been since I first met Jay. I retold her everything and I meant everything. If something felt out of place to her she would keep asking about it to make sure I was alright. She was very loving. The fact that i had worried her made me feel cared for.

Having a family who hated me, made me feel useless. All those wandering eyes that pointed out "The Equalist failure" made me hate them more, those who I hadn't even talk to. Tonight, Jay had pushed me beyond my limits.

"That's awful! Glad to see your still in one piece though." She said.

"Thank you, it means a lot. It was a pretty rough time. I can still feel the smog stuck to the side of my lungs. Thank you for helping me." I said.

Said gave me an innocent looking smile, and at one point my eyes were lost in his blue eyes.

"Anytime Khai. I'm just lucky you were passing by my apartment when I came home from work."

"Yeesh, long day?"

"You don't know the half of it. But it's a very long story." she said mimicking my exact words.

"Well, it's going to have to be a very long night." I replied.

We both laughed again, chuckling together like this made me feel whole and not so worthless. However the laughter had caused a cramp to form in my side. My muscles twisted together, making me grunt hard.

"Oh, hang on I know what to do."

Kya left my side and went into another room. My hand clentched at my side, although it only seemed to get worse. Kya arrived back witha bowl filled with water. Using her bending, she spread the water over my torso, and it began to glow.

It felt as if my whole body was getting messaged, the healing water clearing out all my pain that had been in my side. My mucles instantly relaxed and I let a relaxed sigh.

"My father taught me that one." Kya said. She looked at me and smiled, her innocence, the way she looked at me with her blue sparkling just made me safe. She was absolutely stunning. The fact that she had brought up her father had made me sick though. Sick with guilt. When we left Kyoshi, she was forced to leave it all behind. Unlike mine, her family probably wants her back.

"The only thing I can do is take away bending. My damned father, taught me how to chi block. The sad part was that I didn't even realize it until today." I said.

_Talk about a conversation killer man, idiot!, _ I shouldn't have brought that up. I didn't want to sound pitiful.

She looked at me with compassion, she seemed to absorb my sadness in a way where, anything with her made me feel safe.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean-"

"No, no it's fine. You've been through a lot, a level of pain that I couldn't even imagine. If anything I should be the one to apologize for bringing it up." She said.

That really got my attention, there was no way I was going to let her take the fall for something that I clearly brought up. I sat up, this time fully accomplished. I had passed through the healing water and now at upright next to her. She hadn't been expecting me to sit up so fast. Putting away her water back into the bowl she sat down next to me, our eyes locked.

"No. Don't take it out on yourself. I shouldn't have brought it up I'm sorry and.. and thank you. For everything you've done for me. You don't know how much you've made my life so much more livable. I know we should spend more time together and I'm sorry _I_ haven't been there for you. Kya, I.. I." My mind and conscious had totally broken down. From that point on I didn't know what to say but Kya helped out.

She pressed her hand against my cheek and guided my face towards hers. I had been turning away from embarrassment. We got closer, to the point where our lips touched. My hand brushed against her cheek, it felt like a whole lifetime had passed when kissing her. The love we had for each other was unforgettable but it was my hatred towards others that would get in the way.

Seconds past, then minutes. Our lips still locked as we slowly fell backward onto the bed.

The thing with my hatred was that with Kya. It wasn't suppressed at all. It was gone.


	27. Lobotomy

**Jun and The Lieutenant **

The morning was unusually bright. Even the pilot of the war balloon seemed to have some sort of interference with the sun as he prepped for departure. Unknowing that his leaving of Greenrook Depository Prison was going to be longer then he had expected.

It was suppose to be just an ordinary delivery of medical and military supplies but today had been different. Amon's Lieutenant had been instructed to give a list of orders to Amon's head medical chief, Jun. Nothing of great importance, just some interrogating of prisoners, torture, and the listening of the cries of prisoner as they each had their humanity and basic rights stripped from them, without the public knowing.

Greenrook Prison had been kept a secret. It had to, to make sure the the people of Republic City were unaware of the cruel treatment. Only being off the coast of Republic City, this had been the Lieutenants first day here and already he could smell the prisoners, as they were bathed in their own sweat and fear.

Greenrook had two levels. The surface, which had been disguised mostly as just a plain island. Tree's, rocks, and even small rivers engulfed the place, making it look like an ordinary island. It was the sewers and drainage pipes, casting out the slime and feces that had belonged to Greenrook that had kept most wandering eyes to turn away. Brown and Green waterfalls occasionally poured out in an enclosed area that had kept the pollution from reaching the cities docks. The surface was always kept close at watch, and guarded 24 hours a day.

The second level rested beneath the bottom and held all the atrocities that tortuous deeds that had been done to the most evilest of criminals. Once far enough on the island, metal structures and support beams could be seen making their way through the islands mountains and finally into an elevator shaft, the only accessible way in and out of the prison. When you were lowered down, it was a whole new world of stone, dirt, and metal.

The Lieutenant had a dream of eradicated benders. His vision wasn't to do all that he heard about from Jun. He highly disagreed with torture Jun told him about, unless it was for the sake of equalizing Republic City, not for medical tests and recreating forgotten medical myths.

The elevator slowly coasted to the floor, the metal gates opened revealing the dark city of steel. Jun was the first to step off, followed by the Lieutenant and three other Equalist soldiers.

"Welcome to Greenrook Prison, Lieutenant." Jun announced, acting so content of his industrial hell whole.

The entrance was just as expected. A large dark chrome, like structure filled with crates, security checkpoints, and officers quarters had mainly been the sights at the bottom of the elevator shaft. The rest of the prison cells have been further down into the mountain.

"Skip the intro Jun. I'm just here to report the prisoner logs and give you instructions based on Amon's wishes." He replied.

Jun received a large tan folder. He scanned through what he could only see from the top but truly trying to see how much paper work had been handed to him.

"Damn, and I thought Kyoshi gave out more homework. Kidding of course, I'll get these orders done right away." Taking the moment to briefly check through the files, Jun tucked them under his arm and started towards the first security checkpoint. "You said your also here for the logs, right Lieutenant?"

"Yes" He replied.

"Well those I had accidentally left in my office so if you'll just wait.."

"'_I am_ also under order to inquire anything I can about Greenrook, meaning I will be going with you." Said The Lieutenant.

A mask of irritation had placed itself on Jun's face, "That wasn't in the notice I received."

"It's an order from Amon, deal with it."

If Jun knew there was going to be tension between the two of them, he'd probably make up some excuse and schedule another day.

"Right, your men stay here though. Well, follow me."

The Equalist guarding the first checkpoint unlocked the gate. Allowing Jun and the Lieutenant to pass through the rotating iron bars easily. They entered downward, deeper into the tunnel. Closer they got to the main prison, the more the Lieutenant started to cough. He constantly cleared his throat.

"The air's thin down here. But you'd get used to it if you worked down here as long as I have." Jun said. That had been the lie that Jun had told Amon. That he'd been down here most of his Equalist career, sometimes he'd come up for medical demonstrations and other new types of Equalist tech, which he occasionally worked on with other engineers.

"Of course. So where are the cells?" He asked.

"This way."

He lead the Lieutenant until he had finally reached a more level surface. The ground being more flat, but the air still just as thin. The next security checkpoint looked just like the first. A cage like door, with a metal cage balcony where guards would often patrol. Next to the checkpoint there was a large window, modified where nobody could see through from the other side. However, as high as it was, nobody would even notice it.

The two of them walked over to the window, looking down into the massive courtyard like place below. Held up by the metal supported beams which acted like its skeletal structure. A sea of gray jumpsuits filled the bottom edges of the pit. Prisoners mining minerals and ore for mere scraps of food, nowhere ear enough to fill one days meal.

"What is this Jun?" The Lieutenant spat out.

An evil grin spread across Jun's face. Seeing what he could do to those who used to be powerful, made him feel incredibly powerful, made his adrenaline levels rage within him, and made his blood boil with fury.

"This is how you truly create peace, Lieutenant." Jun Replied.

"Are they benders?"

"Not anymore."

"Why are you doing this to our own kind Jun? Are they traitors, deserters, or followers of the oppressive benders?" The Lieutenant said.

Ignoring his question for the time being, Jun walked over to the second security checkpoint. Being structurally the same, the door had just been a giant vault. It was Jun's sick way of treating people like objects without free will, without purpose, and without anyone humane treatment. That's why he called it a "Depository Prison".

"This is how you keep people in line, Lieutenant. Trust is for the weak, you must control the with fear to get to the hearts and minds of the public." Jun replied.

"That's ridiculous, nobody has ever done that! We do what we do for Equality, against the oppressive bending reign!" He exclaimed.

"The Fire Nation did. Firelord Ozai kept his evil empire controlled the world for nearly over 100 years! Sure he fought back, eventually loosing his bending to the avatar but he gave the world something useful. Something for everyone to truly fear." Jun said.

Jun never answered, he gave the orders to the Equalist guard, the vault opened. Rolling off to the side, it revealed what really laid behind it. Jail cells toward over one another. Many floors had roamed upwards combined with metal cage walls that had connected them. Cries and moans filled the air, swearing and pleads for guilt rose above all others.

The Lieutenant gawked at the flights of stairs that made up of the mountain. He coughed much more often now that they had entered the musky air of the prison. Being thin as it was, it's had almost a green texture to it, causing most prisoners to become ill and often puke in their own cells.

"Jun, these men are able to be forced into the Equalist cause, not sit here in their own filth. You should really set them free."

"Work will set them free Lieutenant. Seeing as I don't take orders from you, I'll tell you what. Pick one and I'll send him to the Equalists, with you. That is, if you can find one that's not playing around in their own drool." Jun said, letting a little chuckle slip out.

Ignoring his sick comment, the Lieutenant took him up on his offer. He wouldn't have let a good soldier go to waist. He walked up to three cells but all of them had looked the same. dead, sad eyes, pale white skin, and a dried crimson smear, that the Lieutenant had known to be blood, had been stained on the bridge of their noes.

They were all perfectly quiet, starring through the Lieutenant as if he was nothing. One of the had even mumbled to himself, turning his head left and right, as if still looking for a way out. Still, one thing that they all had in common, besides their dead personalities, were the blood stains. Near their left eye was a darker path of blood and a tiny scar had showed itself.

The Lieutenant walked down the cells, one by one searching for a strong body to join the Equalists. They were all the same. Moaning and drooling without their intentions, they had been permanently scarred. As he passed each dark, rusted cell, he heart pounded faster and harder. Jun had been slowly following behind him, with each cell, his grin grew bigger.

"How did you learn to.."

"It's amazing how taking out a little portion of the frontal lobe can wither someone down into such a, zombified state." Jun interrupted.

"Lobotomies? All of them to our own kind? Jun this is inhumane!" The Lieutenant exclaimed.

"_Humanity, _Lieutenant, is the very foundation in which I wish to restore. And we cannot restore which is already lost, since so much war has polluted our world it is my job have to restore it." Jun said.

"You mean Amon's job?"

"Yea, Amon's." Jun lied.

Clearing his throat, they moved on but the things the Lieutenant had heard had never left his mind, not even for a second.

"So what? You plan to drill into every ones brain? Was that your idea of a free equal world?" The Lieutenant asked.

"Yea, that's what the world needs Lieutenant. A bunch of drooling zombies, stumbling over the city, bumping into each other and never getting work done. " Jun jokingly said.

The Lieutenant took it seriously at first but seeing Jun's sarcastic facial expression made him think otherwise. They walked on, climbing flights of stairs, they finally reached the 4th floor, reaching Jun's office. Stacks of papers stood on his desk, and a brown tattered briefcase had also sat there. A giant poster of Amon had hung on the wall, symbolizing the pride of the Equalists.

"Here are the prison logs, will that be all?" Jun said.

"Yes. You do realize I must report this to Amon right?" The Lieutenant informed.

"Yea. Do what you must but my research _will_ go on."

"Research for what Jun?"

"The better man, Lieutenant."

The Lieutenant had broken the silence, by clearing his throat.

"You take to much pride in your work. I'll be leaving now." The Lieutenant said.

_Weird choice of words, you Equalist fuck, _Jun thought.

The Lieutenant walked out of the room. Jun's fist grew tighter around his medical scalpel, which had been tucked away, in his pocket the whole time. It had taken all his strength just to not plunge it deep into the Lieutenant neck. Being a fake Equalist made him sick, and it took all his strength not to stab himself with it.

* * *

><p><strong>Greenrook Surface (2 hours before The Lieutenant's<strong> **arrival)**

Aside from the sewage being dumped from the island, the city looked quite astonishing. It was this peacefulness that kept him from going psychologically insane. Like Khai, Jun to wanted peace. However as Khai wanted to seek it out, Jun would hunt for it and would kill just about anyone who opposed that dream. They were more alike then anyone else in the city, both been hurt, seeking a way out, and yet they both had a common goal.

Wearing just a simple Equalist medic uniform, underestimating his fighting abilities would be foolish. The wind blew through his thick blonde hair and it carried out like a massage on his scalp.

Looking out into the city, he saw no positives, only those who wished to corrupt it. However his plans were going perfectly, The Pride were under his control, he has a great control on the Equalists as is, and with the help of a man from another world, the Equalists seemed almost invincible.

"Jun."

Jun turned around to see Yu standing right behind him. The wind had been blowing his brown Pride robes, and his back had been held in place.

"Jun, what is the meaning of this?" He asked.

He spoke with a deep fierce voice, and being the old man he was, he was not playing around.

"I'm not sure, you came to me." Jun said calmly, turning back around to face the city.

"Stop toying with me boy!" Yu shouted, the earth began to shift again, beneath his feet. Jun could almost feel it begin to crumble, it was definitely getting looser. "What's going on, why have you stopped responding to us." Yu demanded.

Jun sighed and turned around. The expression on his face couldn't have looked more bored then any other.

"I'm going to go on a wild card here and say Admiral Geming doesn't know your here." Jun said.

"I want answer dammit!" Yu growled.

"And I want a better world Yu but you and I both know that we're only going to get questions." Jun relied. He had begun to pace around but with every step he took, the ground only got more sensitive.

"Why haven't you been helping us? We need the information from Amon to take down the Equalists what kind of spy are you?"

"Watch yourself Yu or Geming will hear of our meeting."

"Bullshit, you'll tell him anyway!"

Jun sighed, the sun rays had already been baking him alive but the cool air of the morning wind had kept him standing. Jun could see that Yu's eyes were red, he had been sleep deprived and with the anger he had it would only do him harm.

"There must be some point to all this Yu. If you know I'll report this incident to Geming, which is quite amazing because even I can't predict the future, then you must've realize that there will be some consequences to your seemingly betrayal and insubordination. Or is it that your body is catching up to your age, becoming weak and fragile?" Jun said.

A slight tremor could be felt under the earth, Jun stood only with a smile on his face and his hands in his pockets. Yu's fist were clenched so tight his knuckles popped. Ignoring his insults he focused on the main subject.

"How can I be accused of Insubordination when there hasn't been one damn command? Admiral Geming is frustrated as hell and suspect you of treachery, even the rest of my drunken associates are getting nervous! What the fuck do you want me to do? I can't just go killing others all the time. We need to step up, show the world what we are! Benders are superior and with these Equalists quickly rising to power, we need to act now!"

"But?"

"But.. if I stay here, stay with The Pride, it's not going to happen. What we're doing is pointless, creator or not, it's your duty to lead us and your not doing a damn thing! I'm to old for this shit, Jun. And for me to finally realize this, is pathetic. I'm done." Yu finished.

As much as Jun hated to hide it, his gut was boiling with rage. Insulting a superior like this was unheard of in his lifetime and just quitting? No he couldn't just walk away. Nonetheless, Jun kept his cool.

"It's a shame Yu. I had the next assignment coming in right after this meeting I have. It's an assault on an Equalist outpost, near the corner of district-"

"No! No more of this bullshit. These are just sad games lead on by a mere child! I'm done with you, The Pride, and those who view themselves higher then me! I've hated it from the beginning. And you, well, you've opened up a door on yourself that will never close."

Yu turned around and began to walk off, his heart had steadied itself, knowing that he had won. He would forever hold a grudge on Jun but he was a free man. Irritation still flooded his bloodline but knowing that he had outspoken his so-called superior made him feel in control again.

_Outspoken a 19 year old child, why the hell didn't I do this sooner? Yu thought._

"You want out? Fine! I'll get you out, put you out of this pathetic suffering you call a life!" Jun barked.

Yu hadn't had a chance to react. Before he knew he proud new, free life was cut short. His eyes grew in horror as Jun's retractable spear had passed through his chest. He had felt no pain but the rippling affect of this level of impalement had brought his body into complete shock. If he would kept his eyes on Jun he probably could've countered, effectively but now he had no chance.

Jun's retractable spear had been hidden on his thigh and the black color had blended in perfectly. The design of Jun's spear had made it able to pass through object like a regular spear but a lot deadlier Not to mention it was more concealable.

Launching it like a javelin, Yu now had more then three and a half feet of solid, spiraling steel through his chest. He gripped the blade in one hand as he tried to regain control over his body. Thin lines of blood trickled down his chest and would eventually enter his mouth. The sheer terror of starring death in its face made him drop to his knees, he body hunched over.

"It's amazing of what 5 feet of steel can do to a man's body at such speed's. And with your body in this much peril, it'll suddenly revert to it's aged old self, feeling old and brittle. My only complaint is that you could've felt your pain." Jun said.

Yu gargled on his blood, running down the edges of his mouth, he did his best to hold it in. He struggled to pull it out, not feeling any pain he could've done it instantly but it's positioning had put to much strain on his body. Jun had approached him from behind, gently sliding his medical underneath his neck.

"You know something Yu? You need to take more Pride in what you do." Jun said.

The cut was clean, with a flick of the wrist. The slit around Yu's throat caused blood pour down like a waterfall. Jun removed the spear and retracted itself to its original one and a half foot length. His picked up the body, hauling the bloody mess over his shoulder, he looked off the cliff he had been looking out from. He tossed the body, into the sludge below. The body smacked hard against the mixture of raw sewage and excess grime, slowly falling beneath the contaminated water, bobbing up and down before finally sinking beneath the hot, bubbling slime.

It was only 15 minutes before another Equalist soldier had arrived.

"Sir, I have those prison logs for you. Ar- are alright sir? Your covered in blood."

"I'm fine soldier just a little run in that's all."

"Here? Without a guard's notice? Sir I apologize, I'll up security immediately!" The soldier said.

"Make sure you do. As for those reports, take them back to my office, I want to give a little tour to The Lieutenant."

"Yessir!"

The Equalist ran off, not taking one chance in looking back. Jun had also began to walk back, needing to change from his bloodied appearance.

* * *

><p><strong>News Report (Later that day)<br>**

"Top story tonight! Another Prides member found dead at the edge of Greenrook island! Stabbing and a brutal cuts on his upper body have detectives suspecting foul play! The body had apparently washed up on scene of a Yangchen district docks, covered in what seems to be the sewage of whatever comes out of that island. With the reports here today with me and events from the past, it seems maybe that Equalist fugitive Khai may be held responsible after his last encounter with another Prides member. Tops detectives and Equalists soldiers now patrol the border with heavy force, no movements in or out of the borders are going to be permitted for the time being so expect heavy delays! Captain Ming Sven on behalf of the council has been asked to lead this investigation on this absolute unimaginable crime! Saying he will bring down this unruly Equalist in our district, with heavy force."


	28. Bounty

**Rep. 1 Radio Broadcast  
><strong>

"It must be a great privilege to be selected to lead this investigation Captain Sven." The reporter said speaking with great delight.

"Yes, yes. Although my time as a Captain and having the privilege to work personally with the Council has been brief, I must say I think my skill of intelligence, strength, and pride in my bending nature, have excelled greatly without consequence." Sven replied.

The reporter spoke with great delight. It was almost painful for him to hold in such excitement. Captain Sven was a celebrity to a lot of people and of course an enemy to the criminals, the waste that wandered the city streets and had nothing better to do then to commit petty crimes.

"Speaking of pride Captain, how is your investigation of the Pridesmen's death coming and what does it have to do with a young Equalist fugitive named Khai? Asked the reporter.

The Captain stopped for a moment to think about the question. When he did speak, his words were stretched as if trying to fit the words together. As a high ranking officer he wasn't permitted to release to much information out in the open so he had to be careful.

"Well. The Investigation itself is coming along, uh, quite nicely. We have, uh, gathered enough evidence to send the criminal responsible away for quite some time. But my superiors forbid me to reveal to much as it is a classified case." Sven ended by snapping off his last words but eventually carried on. "As for Khai, it just doesn't seem to end with this guy. First off, let me just say that he is under protection by Chief Bei Fong and she has ordered no one to lay a finger on him. Same order comes from the new Councilmen, Drake of the "Predatorian Empire", to me it's just a load of bull. Thanks to this investigation however, the law states I have the right to interrogate any who are deemed apart of the crime." Sven said.

"Yes, we have been going through a lot of changes here in Republic City. Unknown soldiers, a whole new type of government? It seems like a whole lot to deal with, when going through such a dangerous revolution with the Equalist's." The reporter replied.

"I agree with you one hundred percent. This new form of government and their users called "The Predatorians" are nothing more then incompetent bullies, pushing their way through a falling city just to achieve power. I won't have this! Having one of _their_ high officials in _our_ office, is unacceptable! And I know that the bending forces of Republic City and those of the United Forces will not tolerate such Anarchy!" Sven answered.

"But don't you think any bender of Republic City could have the mind to support these undesirables, that seem to have fallen right out of the sky?" The reporter asked.

"Let me tell you this. If any bender dares to support the Equalist cause, which would be stupid in their case, or the Predatorians are traitors to Republic City and to themselves!"

* * *

><p><strong>Khai<strong>

I couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to smash that radio onto the ground but realizing that I hadn't been in my own apartment had stopped me. Breaking Kya's things to solve my problems was going to help.

I sat on the side of Kya's bed, quietly cursing Captain Sven's name so I wouldn't wake her. If anything the Predatorian Empire would restore peace to this city in a fair way. However convincing the public that a big celebrity such as Captain Sven was wrong was a dead option.

I slammed my palms into my faces, slowly sliding them down in a fit of anger and confusion. Which hadn't lasted long.

I thought about Yu's death. I had now been accused of murdering him. If the fact that the councils benders were on my case, then The Pride are probably going to have a huge fuss over me. My odds of survival was lowered but I knew I would live. However taking extra precautions when walking throughout the city was necessary. Which means, if I'm lucky, not to be kidnapped by another gang of Triads.

_What a waste of time that was, _I thought.

The radio had also announced that Yu had been involved in the assassination of Vice President Hulin of the White Lotus Party. So finding one of the two killers of Hulin was a great success. The Equalists took much delight in this because one of their main problems were The Pride. The clan committed themselves to killing innocent non-benders and pinning the incident on the Equalists to try and reduce some supporters.

The radio died down again, adding in some mild chatter from the reporter addressing the public. When it did buzz back to life, Captain Sven 's was the first to speak and in response, I shut off the radio.

My head was in a daze. I hadn't been fully awaken but I still extra energy in my legs that wanted to get up and move. However I felt like a beaten speed bag. Although Kya's water bending had healed the bruises, I could still feel them, hiding below my skin.

A knock at the door had put me out of my lethargic state. When I had opened the door, I had fully realized that I still had no shirt on from last night and the person at the door had made it even worse.

"Watcha doin' there sexy?" Johnathon said sarcastically.

"Fuck, man. Really! Here of all places?" I relied.

If it wasn't having him being their, he had brought guests. As much as I hated to say it, I could feel my face getting hot.

"Nothin' wrong about bein' comfy around certain people." The second man said.

At first I thought I was still suffering from sleep deprivation and seeing two Johnathon's. After a couple of minutes of coming to my senses I begun to get a sick feeling in my stomach.

"Spirits... why are their two of you?" I said hoping to receive a positive answer like it was his boss and not who I thought it was.

An expression of full honesty sat on Johnathon's face as he answered. "Their aren't your just seeing double." After a couple seconds I actually believed him, still thinking I wasn't fully awake. A grin appeared on his face and then I knew I fell for it. "I'm kidding he's my twin brother!" He announced.

_Shit! I knew it!_ I thought. My heart sank and my stomach felt worse. Porter was right thought. They looked exactly alike. Besides wearing different clothes and the way they spoke, as John's brother had some sort of an accent, they looked amazingly similar.

"Forgive my hospitality but why are you here?" I asked.

"Well I was telling you, you could come to practice today but seeing as your getting laid, I'll go away."

My face burned. There was no way I wasn't blushing now.

"Whoa, whoa John. "Laid?" I, um. Well, it's not like that, uh, you see I-" Johnathon read me like a book. Somehow he was always able to do that. "Look, it's not was you think, we didn't do. You know what forget it." I said, finishing awfully.

The identical twin turned to Johnathon. "And he thought _you_ were gay." he said, stifling a laugh. Johnathon nodded in agreement.

I shot John a irritated glance, which he seemed to ignore.

"Okay, whatever Khai. Look, if you need us, you know where to find us." said Johnathon walking down the stairwell.

* * *

><p><strong>Kya's Apartment<strong>

After an awkward meeting, I shut the door.

"Khai, is everything alright?" Kya asked. Her voice was muffled and groggy but then again she probably had woken up.

"Damn. Please tell me you didn't hear all that?" I asked.

"I woke up like half way through the conversation. Who was that? Johnathon?" She asked, rubbing her eyes.

I let out a sigh and sat back on the side of the bed, nodding in agreement.

"And Guest." I added.

"Who?"

"His twin brother."

Kya giggled a little, knowing my irritation with just one Johnathon was now doubled. I couldn't help but also crack a smile. It was just my luck, the irony of it all. Kya crawled over to me from behind, wrapping her arms around my chest.

"So what did he want?" She asked.

"Just informin' me but his location. In case I need him or he needs me. He'll probably be back at the apartments." I relied.

I felt her arms around squeeze tighter around me. I placed my arms on hers and interlocked fingers. I felt her chin rest on my shoulder and her long beautiful black hair brush against my cheek. I could feel her start to rock me side by side and couldn't help but go along.

"So do you want to do anything today?" I asked.

"Hm? Oh my gosh, no!" She panicked. She scrambled off the bed, running to her dressing room.

Confused as hell, I walked over to the door. "Uh, what?" I asked, not trying to sound desperate. A few seconds later and a little laughter had echoed through the room and her head peeked out from the door.

"No, I didn't mean that way. My timing sucks, I'm sorry. I meant "No" to the fact that I have to work today and I totally forgotten." She replied.

I could hear her scramble for her work clothes, or anything else she needed. I uttered a slight laugh at the misconception.

"Oh alright, um. Do you mind if I walk you to work?" I asked.

Kya came out dressed in a short brown apron over her jeans, and her long silky hair tied back. She put her arms on my shoulders and gently kissed me on the cheek. My heart pounded against my chest.

"I'd love that." She said.

* * *

><p><strong>The<strong> **Apartments **

As the day progressed my mind was all on Kya. Not once on the way back did I have to worry about Equalists, The Pride, or even being a fugitive for that matter. It was nice to feel normal for a change. The streets for lonely but even a bit of silence wouldn't hurt anyone. Sometimes silence was the key. I felt like that every time I was with Kya. No loneliness, nothing but comfort. My brief confrontation with my brother at the Equalist so-called abandoned compound, had been strange. Like it wasn't even himself talking. It was his mood and his personality I had been talking to but something didn't feel normal about him. My father was a lost cause. Sad to say it's true but when someone admits theirs son's faults and failure and still have the ignorance to insult him over the radio, they're not worth it. I hadn't even heard from my mother. I'm sure my abandonment of the Equalists was hard on here but I had to. I couldn't live with murderers.

_Murderers.. my whole family. Did they really kill of Jun's family?_ I couldn't hep but think of it. If I could trade my life for the people my dad and brother have killed, I would. However a life for, who knows how many lives were killed, isn't really a fair trade. Still, the option was always open for me.

I had spent most of the morning having a cup of coffee with Kya. She had extra time to kill so when had a cup, talked, laughed, and enjoyed our time together. When I had left I had gone back to the storage facility that had disguised our apartments. There I trained for a long time. Using my knowledge of my katana to practice basic forms. Moving quickly but striking with great power, this sword isn't one to test on a block of wood to see how deep you cut into it but rather how you move with it and using it as an extension of your body.

I had also practice hand to hand combat, the stuff that Johnathon had showed me. Such interesting style of combat that I had never heard of, nor my father had taught me. Seeing as I hadn't practiced with him in a while I could guess that he would eventually have me team with him or any of his team members. It was the least I could give him in return for the apartments. I'm not sure if he was paying or not but training seemed to be the rent.

The day went on and soon enough it was nearly dark. Killing myself with training felt like an fulfilling day. When I had got to my apartment, my front door had been kicked in. Literally bashed open as if blown open by blasting jelly. Which would be a stupid idea because blasting jelly had been illegal for all civilian personnel. That and the spare key was right under the mat.

I rolled over on my side, stopping there as I had nearly rolled onto 7 inches of carbon steel. The light combat knife was 11 inches in full length. The synthetic handle was made up of a neatly carved and stained wooden base but anyone with a knowledge of any sort of short length weaponry would know that it had been created out of a Kraton polymer. One thing I had noticed about the blade, was that it had the words "Drawn with anger, sheathed with honor" on the side.

It was a neat blade, one that I had never used professionally. I sat it down to pay more attention to the note, which had been from Porter.

_Khai,_

_When your done getting laid I have some news for you. Unlike all the "fun" times you've had with nearly dying to an Equalist of any kind, we have been invited as guests to a party, celebrating the new task force that Tarlock is creating, to root out any Equalists. Now this isn't just a party, trust me, my eyes are going to be on that bastard the whole time. To me it's just another plot to get Korra to join the force. Anyway I'll have already left by the time you read this but I'm going up to Air Temple Island to meet Tenzin and to have dinner with them. I'll be back later - don't hold me to that. Anyway I've left you quite a sum of yuans in your drawer to go and buy something classy to where. I expect change, don't hold back on me, man, I know where you live! Anyways buy something nice and I've also gotten you that KA-BAR combat knife, you've probably noticed by now. Can't go to a private part with a big ass katana on your back, you got to be stealthy. Yes I know it's a party but that doesn't mean you can let your guard down. Oh one more thing before, it's a party! Bring someone, preferably Kya. See ya later man.  
><em>

_ - JP  
><em>

A party? Sounds like something different for a change. As entertaining as the letter was, it did sound fun. Something needed a change and this was perfect. Plus this was a great opportunity to spend time with Kya.

_Wait? If this is a private party, would I be allowed to bring her? _I thought. Suddenly I got worried. If this was to celebrate those on the task force then I wouldn't think she'd be allowed.

I cursed to myself. I really wanted to bring her but I saw no way to get around this. I turned over the note and surely enough their was another part of the message.

_P.S_

_I don't care how you bring her, just bring Kya. Make it a date and sneak her in, I don't know, just do it!  
><em>

"Wow. Even when he's not here he's still with me." I said allowed. I laughed at the irony.

"So how was your night with Kya?"

I turned around to see Ruan at the door. He had a giant smile on his face and I could tell Johnathon had clued him in on what had happened.

"Calm down, nothing happened, or at least not what your thinking." I said.

He folded his arms and started to laugh, walking closer to the bed, he picked up KA-BAR and examined it closely.

"Seriously though, it's not what you think. So you've heard the news?" I asked.

"About the party? Yea man, the whole city is buzzing about it. Saying it might be able to turn around this damn civil war."

"Yea. That's what I hope."

Ruan's face suddenly went serious. He looked at me as if someone I knew had died.

"I, also heard about Captain Sven and the "investigation" of Yu's death."

"You to, huh?"

"What'ya going to do man?"

I got off the bed. Honestly I didn't have a straight answer. I tucked the KA-BAR in it's holster which latched on nicely to my belt.

"I don't know. Hope it blows over? Avoid the cops? Clear my name? I'm only human man, I'm not sure what to do. What about you are you going to the thing?" I asked.

"Nah. Porter says I need to train more, plus I'm not really much of a formal party type of person."

I rolled my eyes.

"So you want to come with me and pick out a suit or something classy?" I asked. A blank expression formed on Ruan's face.

'Sure. First let me put away my stamp collection and feed my pet fire gecko."

"I'm not sure how a fire gecko fits in with your sarcastic comment." I said.

Ruan rolled his eyes and laughed. His sarcasm was terrible but I wasn't fond of buying clothes either.

* * *

><p><strong>Anto's Apparel<strong>

I was never a man of style but rather out on whatever was there. Finding a suit or maybe even newer clothes would be fine with me. Johnathon had left me with 300 yuans, plenty to buy something new and to have some left over.

Anto's Apparel was a place I would have never even thought about going to. It's fairly close to the coffee shop, maybe a little further but I had never noticed it. It was a top notch, very classy place. Carrying anything from men's tux's to ladies wedding gowns. The place glowed with incredible decorations. Gilded tapestries, mahogany tables carved down to the finest detail, and red royal rugs as if made for a king or queen.

Not to mention a chandelier hung on every other square inch of the ceiling. It lit up the whole store, making a grand luminescent display for anyone who walked by. I literally had to cover my eyes when I first entered, it had been so bright.

Mirrors paneled the ceilings, that was not taken up by a chandelier. Long mirrors hung on walls and yet I was not surprised to see the spoiled, wealthy class citizens taking on their luxuries one bit at a time. Taking hours to admire themselves, wearing a single hat they already own.

There was only the single floor but it was enough to make you seem like you had just stepped inside heaven.

"You there! Greasy brown haired boy!" A man shouted.

_Why did people insist on calling me a boy? I'm 19 for fucks sake! Although I could've taken a shower before I had walked over here._ I thought to myself.

"Uh, me?" I asked.

A large made wearing a tan suit had come out of nowhere. He was a pretty large man, and I'm not talking about in height. A top hot and monocle had pushed the limits, making him look like some sort of old prospector during the 100 year war. The diamond mounted cane he held was useless because he walked without limp. He also spoke with a sort of a proper feminine accent.

"Yes child, what are you doing here?" He asked.

"I'm buying a couch, got any that can fit in my apartment? It's alright because the door already off its hinges." I said jokingly.

The large man gawked at my sarcasm. Depending from his clothes, sense of humor, and tone of voice, he probably didn't have a sense of humor.

"Look I'm joking, I'm just looking for something classy for this party I'm going to." I informed him.

His eyes grew bigger. He examined me closely as if he knew me.

"Get out!" He ordered

"What?" I asked.

"I said, GET OUT!"

His face flushed to a bright red. His nose snarled and his eyebrows rose beyond their normal height. I almost thought he would have blown his mustache clean off his face.

"Look It was a joke. I'm sorry if it up-"

"Oh please. I deal with immature brats like yourself, almost everyday. I wasn't referring to your sarcastic remark." He interrupted.

Just as he said that, I figured it out.

"You know about me huh?" I said.

"I want nothing to do with fugitives, criminals, or anything that is willing to disturb the peace. Especially if those are Equalists! Now get out! Your kind isn't allowed here. It's a disgrace that Chief Bei Fong has requested you to live here with those new "Predatorians" or whatever the hell they're called. Oops my apologies, "heck', I'm not much of a curser." He said adding in a slight feminine chuckle.

Usually I'd be at the point where I would want to slit someones throat. That or my self esteem would have been stricken down. However being with the short time I had with Kya seemed to have changed a lot of things.

Seeing as it was coming from a guy, or rather, person like this, it felt like taking a punch from a pillow. My emotions didn't change, nor did my tone or facial expression but I rather felt a little happy.

I had noticed a suit over the man shoulder, It was a full black suit but not as black as a tux would be. It came with a white under shirt and a black tie. On the sleeves were a set of round, silver cufflinks. It wasn't anything special, compared to the clothing that the councilman and higher officials wore but it was still decent enough to be seen at a fancy party.

A pair of black, brightly polished shoes sat underneath the suit, as each piece had been hanging differently on a hook. The suit had also came with a pin striped fedora but seeing as I wasn't a hat person my mind was only drawn to the body pieces.

"Sure thing, but I will be leaving here in that." I said pointing the the luxurious suit behind him.

He spun around and laughed, nearly loosing the position of his monocle.

"Are you serious? Your a mere lower class beggar, what make you think you can afford that?" He asked.

I took out the bag of yuans, Porter had left me, along with the knife and the note. After tossing the money over to the man, he went into shock. His body froze and this time his monocle fell, only to be caught on the golden chain it had been connecting to. He had let go of his cane, proving my theory that nothing had been wrong with his leg but rather wanted it to be fancy. It slid slowly over his massive belly and after coming to an abrupt halt, a smile had grown across his face.

"Now we're getting somewhere?" I assume.

The man laughed tremendously and after pocketing the coins into his over sized pocket, he stepped aside. He picked up his cane and tugged on the top folds of his suit, filing out any wrinkles.

"Your talking my language young man, right this way! Anto Baebeu, at your service!"

* * *

><p><strong>The Coffee Shop<strong>

It had been getting very late at this point and I assumed Kya would have been getting off soon. After obtaining the suit, I immediately went home and hung it somewhere out of sight. Luckily, I had a bottle of polish Anto had given to me for free. Just in case I needed to shine my shoes or my silver cufflinks.

For right now, I dressed in my usual dark red shirt, thin black jacket, and dark jeans. I wanted her to be surprised to know that they were going to a party. It wasn't much of a formal, dance party but rather to celebrate the new task force created to stop the Equalists. There would be dancing and I would imagine the usual type of fancy atmosphere set up, to lure the eyes of anyone who was important enough. However this was the type of party would probably be just a way for Councilman Tarlock gain more fame from the reporters.

Even though this was just a publicity stunt, a party is a party. Kya would love to go and have a good time and I would be glad to invite her. Time past and a little old lady had walked out of the shop. The grey haired lady that owned the shop had left first. She walked out in a short brown apron that ended at her knees. I immediately identified her as owner of coffee shop.

A few minutes later and Kya hadn't left. I began to worry, she was already at her apartment. I began to walk up to the front door, knowing the owner hadn't locked it, I assumed Kya had still been in there and was probably ready to close up.

I opened the door, triggering a bell above. Almost immediately, a voice followed.

"I'm sorry we're closed." A female voice echoed.

I already knew it was Kya. I entered a little bit closer, shutting the door, the bell rang again.

"Hey, it's me Khai." I called back.

"Oh hey! Give me a sec, I'm just locking up the back pantries." Kya replied.

She walked out a little bit later, dressed in her usual work clothes. A dusting of coffee had swept across her apron and a greater smell of coffee beans had entered the room.

"Hey, hows it going?" i asked

"Not to bad, shifts are killer, but all in all the pays good." She said uttering a laugh.

Her smile was big and her eyes were beautiful as always. She laughter was contagious, no matter what how soft it was.

"Hey, I have great news! Would you like to go on a date with me to the Gala Event?" I asked. Her face shown a bit of confusion but it was the type of confusion which was both exiting and hard to believe. After flashing the invitation, I had packed before leaving, her face lit up

"_Thee_ Gala Event? Khai, how the hell did you get tickets to that?" She said.

"I had people." I said sarcastically.

"It was Johnathon wasn't it?" She said, raising a brow.

We both laughed. We talked a bit more on the subject and she confirmed the invite.

"Thank you, thank you!" She said. Wrapping her arms around me.

"Hey, I want to spend more time together with you. This seemed like the beginning of many wonderful events together." I said.

Her lips gently pressed on my cheeks and eventually moved over to my lips. My arms rapped around her and I could tell that this was definitely going to be the beginning of many things.

* * *

><p><strong>The Pride <strong>

The sanctuary bar was cleared out. No bottles, chairs, tables, trash, or anything in the room besides every members of the pride. Admiral Geming stood up front, while the others stood patiently in in front of him, their blood boiling with rage.

"My Brothers and Sisters of a better bending nation. Last night another member of ours, Yu was killed. This is a second defiance of our clan since Kessen was killed by a man, no older then 19. How can we let this happen, my brothers? Our whole organization of a better bending nation is falling apart! This is a time of great chaos that could unravel at any second! Our enemies, The Equalists and those benders who oppose us for what we do for them, need to realize that we are not weak! We are strong unified minds, who's devotion for a better world, _will not_ be broken! Yet, two of us have been killed. My friends we might not have much respect for each other but at least we can say one thing! Bending. is. superior. We need to show them what we are all about, we need to take back republic city for ourselves! As you may know from the picture of the man that killed two of our clansman, that he is nothing! How can suck a weakling defeat two of ours! We are the best, who support the best, and will triumph over the worst. Only the strongest survive ladies and gentleman, burn that into your brains! Our enemy, Khai, an ex Equalist, now supports the benders? Ha! A failure of life, who deserves only the worst for his treachery and cowardly return. This is the last time we'll be seeing the place, you know our new locations and I expect you to be there. Thanks to our scout, Mao, we now know that our main target lives somewhere in the Yangchen district. We will be sending out death squads but to make sure our clan lives on, most of them will not be made up of us. Remember my brothers and sisters, life is only round one. Round two will consist of a far greater threat. Make sure everyone wins round one."


	29. The Gala Event

_Authors Note: Hey everyone, once again, I do not own LoK in anyway possible, if I did I wouldn't be writing about it here now would I? To learn and read more about Johnathon, his team, or the Predatorian Empire, check out **Mastermind123's **story **Nothing is true, Everything is Permitted, **his rating has been changed so it would be a little bit harder to find but it is in my favorites, so have at it. Anyway's enjoy my chapter._

* * *

><p><strong>The Gala <strong>

The Gala event was top news all around the city. Citizens of Republic City were buzzing of the new task force that councilman Tarlock had created to counteract the Equalist uprising. Tenzin was frustrated. Having Tarlock gain such publicity made him worrisome that this was all just an act to gain power. However, seeing as the rest of the council had been siding with Tarlock's forceful attitude, rather then his peaceful one, made him have to choose between the emotions of jealously and patience. He was one of three children of Avatar Aang, his temper and emotions could be controlled and have been for as long as he could remember. The emotions of the a teenage, go-getter, avatar like Korra, took more effort to restrain.

Nonetheless, the night of the celebration of "peace" had finally come. The building was huge, it was the spotlight of the city and was heavily guarded. The people at the entrance of the building were just as bustling as the people on the inside. However, security was tight. Not everyone was going to have a good time.

Velvet restriction ropes blocked off side entrances to private VIP visitors only, just as heavily guarded as the front. People would do just about anything to get in. It was a pretty obvious that people would steal identities to get in, that's why you needed to be on the invitation list as well as having the invite card in hand. Photographers and news reporters argued with the security to get in, saying that it was of the up most importance to get the news of the task force.

There had been plenty of them on the inside and Tarlock had specifically ordered not to let any more in. The news was just as big as the arrival of Avatar Korra and it would a large pay raise for any reporter to get the scoop of the new Anti-Equalist task force.

A long red carpet led down from the stairs into the sidewalk, where long stylish limousine-like satomobiles would pull up and let out those who were important enough to arrive at the party.

We had ours scheduled to arrive at the coffee shop. I had offered to have the limousine to stop for us there, just because it would've been weird to have him pull up next to an abandon compound and get suspicious. The paranoia I had was merely for security reasons. After informing everybody else about this, they seemed to agreed. I was exited, finally a normal night where I could have fun with everybody. Drink a few drinks, maybe gamble a bit, and have a nice time with Kya.

The driver had arrive 23 minutes late due to high traffic in the area. The streets had also been wet from the night before and he claimed he didn't want to loose control of the vehicle. The short, black haired man seemed really nervous of our thoughts and feelings of him. It was like a giant bonus for his pay if he had drove us to the Gala Event without complaint. However we didn't notice much of the delayed time. We just had a good time talking on the curb and by the time he pulled up, we had noticed the time. We were a little irritated but nothing that could ruin such a night like this. Johnathon and Avatar Korra were obviously together. Shana, the female who had knocked me out the first time I had actually met Porter, was there. Dayton Bagg, one of Porter's elite commando's, and a man by the name of Imnosta. Edward, Johnathon's twin brother who had finally introduced himself to me after the ackward first meeting had also accompanied Johnathon to the Gala Event.

Usually events such as The Gala, had limited special guests. However on behalf of the council and with special permission of Tarlock, he allowed avatar Korra to invite anyone who she deemed helpful to the special task force, even though she hadn't yet agreed to join the special fighting team.

Our long satomobile was luxurious. Black leather seating all around, except for the sides. Multiple rooms that held up to four people, Korra, Johnathon, Kya, and I had been in one. While Dayton, Edward, Shana, and Imnosta had been in another part of the satomobile. A bottle of champagne and a few wine glasses, had been freshly cleaned and ready for anyone who wanted to start the party, even before getting there. Compliments of Hiroshi Sato, head of Future Industries.

Cracking jokes and taking a few sips of the champagne, we already knew tonight was going to be a fun one.

"I got to say, going to a party without having to worry about all this revolution nonsense, and constant war with _whoever, _is amazing, glad we can relax." I said, taking another sip.

Johnathon raised his glass towards me and nodded, although the look in his eye seemed dull. As if he had been off edge about something. He took a slow sip and lowered his arm. We all had our fancy clothes, Johnathon had worn a black suit, white undershirt, and a red tie. Korra wore a fancy water bending dress, and Kya wore something somewhat similar except hers was a little more formal. I had my outfit that I bought from Anto's apparel.

The window behind Johnathon and Korra rolled down, revealing Dayton and the other two others sitting in the other section of the satomobile. They all been wearing formal clothing but I wouldn't doubt for a second that they hadn't had some sort of weapon on them, like me and my KA-BAR combat knife.

"I wouldn't get to comfy Khai, these operations never go according to plan. This isn't all fun and games, we're here on business to." Dayton relied.

I shrugged. I finished off my glass of champagne and set down the glass.

"Maybe you should ease up on the drinking Khai, hell, we haven't even arrived at the party." Johnathon said.

Even though I had only drank one glass, it felt like two or three. Maybe it was, I couldn't think straight. All I wanted to do was have a good time with Kya and for once just forget about my past.

"Yea man, there bound to be a lot more good types of wine there. Don't go filling up on this crap." Dayton said.

"I thought it was pretty good." I laughed, adding in a hiccup at the end.

Everyone laughed, and that was mainly our tone during our ride to the party. Imnosta had been on the far side of Dayton and had been shifting uncomfortably, as if trying to get away from Shana.

One person who I had been concerned with was Johnathon. He seemed quieter then usual and I was almost certain he would love to have more then half a glass of that champagne. I had assumed it had to do with Tarlock's political grasp on Korra, seeing at it was his main motive for the party.  
>I tried to whisper, but still we had been to close to actually get privacy to one another.<p>

"Hey. John." I whispered.

He looked up at me but so did Kya and Korra, who's conversation with one another seemed to be cut short, when the words had come out of my mouth. Dayton had also began to turn his head, while Imnosta was trying to get away from Shana who had been casually siting there and looking at him with confusion.

"Uh, never mind. It's nothing." I said.

Korra and Kya shrugged and went back to talking to one another while, Johnathon had stopped looking at me. He had been motioning his hand to get me attention. It took me awhile but after a few aggressive movements of his hand, I finally caught on.

Johnathon's hand had pressed against his suit, revealing a distinct outline of the gun that he had concealed. He sent a glare my way and I immediately knew what he was talking about. I patted my suit in acknowledgment, signalling that I had my concealed weapon at the ready. Johnathon cracked a grin and nodded in agreement.

Just then, the driver's window rolled down, revealing a skinny man wearing a penguin suit.

"Sir, we have arrived." The man said, addressing Porter.

"Show time."

* * *

><p><strong>The Arrival<br>**

The doors to the long satomobile had been opened by two greeters, both wearing the same fancy tuxedo's as the driver. The vehicle was immediately assaulted by flashes, as camera after camera had gone off. People clapped at the appearance of Avatar Korra, and she waved back. Reporters pushed and shoved just to get a glimpse of her, resulting in fights which were quickly ended by the metal bending security force.

Johnathon was just about ready to exit when I had stopped him, finally getting some privacy as the rest of the team had stepped out.

"Hey. You all right man?" I asked.

"Yea, I'm fine."

Something about the way he said his answer felt wrong. He was off tonight, something that I hadn't expected from him. I had assumed in was because of Tarlock taking Korra away from him for his selfish political purposes.

"Hey look man, if this is about Korra, relax. Tarlock's probably not going to show, on account he'll probably be to busy talking to the press. He'll be bragging so much, he'll forget that the party even started. As for Korra, yea she'll get a few pictures here and there but it's not like she'll be completely blinded by the press." I assured him.

Johnathon nodded and we both exited the luxurious satomobile. Immediately we were faced with a building, illuminating in light. It lit up the whole night time sky and for the rest of the night, it would be the chandelier of the city. Handing down from each corners of the building we two huge banners with Avatar Korra in the middle. Johnathon and I locked grieving eyes, and I shrugged.

"Not going to be about Korra, huh Khai?"

"It was the champagne talking, sorry."

We walked on finally reaching another ridiculously dressed man in heavy metal armor but at the same time wearing a tie. Something that said, "Welcome to the party but if you fuck up, we'll kill you", Sort of thing.

"Avatar Korra, lovely to see you, you look radiant as ever." He said.

"Thank you, these are my friends who will be accompanying me." Korra said.

The guard sized up Johnathon and his squad, sending them and dark glance, that everyone seem to catch onto.

"Certainly, an ally of the Avatar's is an ally of mine." He said.

He unhooked the velvet rope, and we slowly walked on by, admiring the decorations and to focused on the building rather then where we were going. Kya and I were in the back, slowly making our way to the front. I could here other guests complaining to the guards about getting in.

"I'm sorry sir, the Zhao's have already arrived." The guard said.

"Impossible! I'm Ming Zhao, how could I have arrived when I'm standing right here!"

"I'm sorry sir but I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"No! It's not fair, I'm right here! Do you know how much, I payed for entry here? How much time it took?" The man's face was bright red.

"Sir, leave or I'll arrest you for failure to comply with an officer."

The man's face steamed in anger, stomping away in fury, he nearly tripped on the steps, which would have sent him into a puddle of old gutter water.

At that point I had lost interest in the argument and it was my turn to pass the guard. I hadn't even recognized the guard at first, as I had only met him once but heard his voice many times. When his clipboard hit my chest, that's when I really paid attention, when our eyes locked, our anger became one and his was all in his face. His eyes were boiling red and his vein could be seen, bulging through his forehead. I didn't have to hear his voice to know he was angry.

"You!" He shouted.

Unlike him I restrained my anger. Knowing Kya was here, I didn't want to risk ruining this night for her.

"Nice to see you again to. I'm guessing that tie is a clip on?" I said sarcastically.

The others stopped and turned to see what was going on.

"It's precautionary, and your kind isn't allowed here! Get out!" He ordered.

Kya held my hand tighter. "Whoa hang on, what's this all about?" She asked.

"I'd like to know that to?" Korra said.

"I don't allow Equalist's into these political parties! And I damn well won't have _him _here, rotten Equalist."

"Ex" I corrected him. It only seemed to make him angrier.

The sound of "Equalist" made heads turn. However, the only thing they saw was a guard throwing a temper tantrum in the presence of the Avatar.

"Look he's fine he's with us." Johnathon said, coming to Korra's side.

She nodded in agreement. Another nearby guard approached.

"What's wrong sir?" He asked.

"Escort him out! I want no filthy Equalists at my party!" Our guard ordered.

"No wait! He's with us!" Korra demanded. The other guard was confused. Taking orders from his superior and following those of the Avatar was very confusing.

"I don't care if he's with Councilmen Tenzin, I want him out!"

"Actually sir, Councilmen Tenzin's already arrived with his family and he's awaiting the presence of Avatar Korra. We should just let him in, leave him to security." The other guard said.

With Korra waiting impatiently, being late would cause suspicion to Tenzin, having him to come out and personally escort them all in, making the guard look foolish.

"Fine. But he never leaves sight of security!" He demanded.

"Well actually sir, we're not authorized to do that."

We past them, I held Kya's hand tightly with a cocky grin on my face. Walking into the radiant grand hall, the sound of the arguing guard was suppressed by the sound of clapping. Less blinding photographers took pictures as Korra walked in. Johnathon had walked slower to get by my side.

"You seemed like you knew him?" He asked.

"Yea. It was Captain Sven. He's sort of celebrity." I replied.

"That same asshole who trash talked the Predatorian Empire?" Johnathon asked again.

"Yep. The very same. What do you think?" I asked.

I could see that the level of concern had increased on Johnathon's face. Kya's had also become concerned, however I'd try my best not to let it ruin her night.

"I think I'm going to need a strong drink."

We both laughed, considering the fact that there were multiple problems going on with us, I knew that they wouldn't be much of a problem tonight. Johnathon had noticed that Korra had already gone off to talk to Tarlock and Tenzin.

"Try not to kill him?" I asked.

"No, my clothes are to expensive to damage. But don't hold me to that." He replied.

Johnathon walked off in her direction, as the rest of his team wandered off in different directions. The grand hall was filled with high ranking officials and members of the council. The best part was that it seemed that nobody recognized me. Feels like I was officially starting over, a new life. Kya wrapped her arm around mine and squeezed her hand.

"Come on, lets go dance!"

* * *

><p><strong>Dancing<br>**

I hadn't danced in such a long time. As Kya elegantly moved to the correct rhythms of the soft music, I occasionally found myself stomping around her feet, trying to get the steps. She would occasionally laugh at my frustration but I would catch on quickly.

"Look who caught on." Kya said smiling.

I couldn't help but laugh.

"I can't help it! I swear I have two left feet!" I said laughing.

Kya grabbed my hands and demonstrated the technique. After failing miserably the first time, the second was a little bit better. Soon enough I had it down. Or at least the first part. There were about a dozen dancers, all elegantly moving in the room next to the grand hall. Our feet swept and moved, without a problem. It was a formal dance, that was pretty common in Republic City, however I wasn't really much for dancing. My hands had been on Kya's hips and her hands on my shoulders, moving back and forth to the music. Johnathon and Korra had been dancing together, as was Edward and Shana.

"How come you never came to any of the colleges dances? Your really talented." She said.

"My dad would never let me go, plus being an Equalist there, it didn't really make sense going." I replied.

"But Ruan went all the time and he's an Equalist. People never seemed to bother him."

"Yea well, I'm not sure Ruan knew he's an Equalist, he's not really all there at some times."

We both laughed but agreed. Ruan was a fun person to be around but to have the reputation of being the son of a great detective made him on edge. He was constantly looked up to by his fathers associates. He never really knew how to act around them, causing his short while fame to decline. One of his personal reasons he liked the idea to relocate.

"Well, the dances there would have been a lot more fun if we got to know each other better there." She said.

"I mist out, big time." I relied.

She smiled as she pulled me in. Our lips brushed together and just then, I really felt guilty about not going to the college dances.

* * *

><p><strong>The Announcement<br>**

Dinner was delayed due to the major press conference of Tarlock and Korra and ran into. They walked from the top of the grand staircase, halfway down where they were met with anxious reporters. Immediately hit with flash of camera's and the reporters scrambled to get their papers and pens out.

Johnathon was busy gambling with Imnosta. His major winnings in blackjack and other various games had made him forget about his trouble, whatever they truly were. Edward and Shana were at the bar, talking and taking in the expensive alcohol. The excitement had alerted nearly everyone. Johnathon and everyone were standing right below the row of reporters. Kya and I were further back but far enough to hear everything.

"Avatar Korra, you witnessed Amon taking away bending at first hand. How much of a threat does he pose to the citizens of Republic City?" A reporter asked.

"I think, he presents a real problem." She said nervously.

Johnathon caught on to Tarlock's grin, he knew exactly what he was doing.

"Then why have you refused to join Tarlock's task force? As the Avatar, shouldn't you be going after Amon?" A second reporter asked, raising his pen.

Korra tried to answer but couldn't fit the words together. She stuttered, which resulted in the second reporter to interrupt her.

"Then why are you backing away from his fight?" His insult of cowardice seen to draw out a slight angered side of Korra.

"What? No, I've never back away from anything in my life!"

More reporters began to jump in, not even giving her time to answer.

"You promised to serve this city, are you going back on your promise now?"

"Do you think Pro Bending is more important then fighting a revolution?"

"How do you think Avatar Aang would have handled this?"

"Are you afraid of Amon?"

The last question was like a spark to blasting jelly. Her face was red with anger and embarrassment. While Tarlock stood in the background, loving every second of her pressure.

"I'm not afraid of anyone! If the city needs me, then I'll join Tarlock's task force."

Tarlock walked up behind her, putting his arm around her shoulder.

"And that's your headline folks!" Her announced.

After a few more camera shots, the room cleared. People made for the dining room, in the east wing of the building. Kya and I looked at each other with the same amount of disgust for Tarlock. My view of Porter was blocked, to many people moving had reduced my vision.

"Quiet an announcement, I'm surprised he didn't hold a knife to her throat as she agreed to the task force." I said.

"Seriously, was a jerk!" Kya replied.

The whole room began to clear, after another host had announced dinner.

"You hungry?" I asked.

"Famished!"

* * *

><p><strong>Dinner <strong>

The dining room was filled. Packed in fact, waiters had to maneuver through without even noticing one another, to increase their professional status.

Large, silver platters carrying pounds of food, were placed on individual tables. The room was filled with smells. Pork, dumplings, steak, and the smell of cooked fish filled each table. Each table had a complimentary glasses of red or white wine on them, followed by the bottle themselves. A candle, placed in the middle of a crystal lantern made the tables illuminate a tiny white light.

"Khai this is amazing! Thank you so much for inviting me." Kya said.

"Hey, I wanted to spend time with you, how about a five star party?" I said.

Kya chuckled, taking a bit of her red wine into her system.

"I must admit, I hadn't been expecting this at all. It was nice of Johnathon to invite you."

On queue, a waiter walked up, carrying a bottle of a famous, imported alcohol. Very rare in Republic City.

"Excuse me sir, this bottle was complimentary of that gentleman over there wearing the red tie." The waiter said.

"Who?"

After placing the bottle down, he pointed over my should. I turned around to see Johnathon raising a glass of wine to me, with Korra holding in her laughter in the back round. I turned back around and saw that he had placed a tag on the imported alcohol that read - _you know what to do, from Johnathon. _A little arrow was drawn onto the tag and pointed in Kya's direction. After a few seconds of trying to dissolve the alcohol in my system already, I figured out the arrow was directed to Kya.

I shook my head in disbelief and couldn't help but laugh.

"What does it say Khai?" Kya asked.

"It says, uh. With hugs and Kisses, love Porter." I said blankly.

She gave me a strange look and could already tell that I was lying. She looked over my shoulder to see Johnathon and Korra talking to one another, not even noticing the reaction. A waiter had gotten Kya's attention and gave her a full list of the meals served tonight, including the specials. It gave me enough time to put the bottle down, close to the edge of the table. I tugged on the edge of my silky tablecloth, causing the imported alcohol to fall and crash to the ground. Heads seem to turn in my direction, including Porters. Wine had splashed upward onto my suit and glass shot outwards.

"Terribly sorry sir, I must've set that bottle to close to the edge." Said the nearby waiter.

"It's fine, I bet it wasn't any good anyway." I said plainly.

I turned towards Johnathon who gave me a what-the-fuck look and I responded with a cocky grin.

"Oh Khai your suit." Kya said alarmed at the stain which seemed to be darker then my suit. It had stood out.

"Sir if I may, there is a cleaning room right down the hall, it will work that stain out." The waiter recommended.

"Thank you. Kya, If you'll excuse me, I'll be right back."

"Want me to order for you?" Kya asked.

"Sure, anything sounds great! Just don't take any more "compliments" from Johnathon or Korra." I announced sarcastically.

* * *

><p><strong>The Courtyard <strong> _  
><em>

When the waiter said, "right down the hall" I'd thought he meant right down the hall, not "go outside and get lost."

The courtyard was the one area in the middle of the building which had a luxurious garden, that was tended to every day. Usually only certain people could pass through here, only for the safety for the flower. However, for a special occasion such as this, it was open to the public. Right now, I was the only one here. A large willow tree was in the middle, it's branches hanging low around everything which made courtyard more, elegant.

I walked around the tree, only to find myself walking around in circles. The air was still and it wasn't long until a cool breeze swept through. The sky was still, the stars dimming but they were there. The temperature had a drastic change when you had passed by, from room temperature to a sudden cold.

_This shouldn't be that hard to find a bathroom, _I thought, still confused on its whereabouts.

It was stereotypical for a guy to get lost and hate to ask for directions but this was ridiculous. A quiet night, followed by footsteps. My head turned but the footsteps location was off due to the echo this courtyard had produced. It seemed to be coming from all directions but by the pattern of his steps, I could tell there was one. Unless he was walking obnoxiously slow.

"Nice night, I hope your enjoying the party." The voice said.

It was a male voice, one that I had heard before but not to often. Was it friendly or a foe? This place was locked down tight so I couldn't imagine anything big to go down tonight.

"Yes, yes I am. How about you?" I replied calmly.

The footsteps started again, this time I knew exactly where he was. Emerging from the shadows, behind a statue of the blue spirit, was a man dressed in a black pinstriped suit, and a red tie. He didn't bother to hide himself under a mask because I knew exactly who he was, and I didn't want to risk being attack out of sheer blindness. I charged him.

Drawing my KA-BAR from under my suit, hidden in an inside pocket, I slammed the man into the statue. He put up no effort to defend himself but only let out a slight grunting noise. The blade had been placed uncomfortably at his throat, causing a tiny trickle of blood to fall down onto his tie.

"It's nice to see you again to Khai." The man said, clearing his throat.

"Shut up! Where is he? Where is Bo? Don't you dare play games with me if you know whats good for you!" I threatened.

The man known as Arann had only smiled. Knowing that he was my brothers best friend, since the start of his Equalist career, I knew he'd wouldn't be alone.

"Relax Khai, there's one here but me." Arann said.

I wasn't going to accept that as an answer, my blade held firmly against his throat. I could feel my face getting hot with fear and anger.

"I'm going to give you a chance to answer my questions. If you refuse, you wont have to worry about your tie being the only thing that's stained!" I told him.

Arann could hear the anger in my voice, yet his words remained at the same tone.

"Fine with me, that's why I was here." Arann said.

"Shut up! That can be your first order. Second, if you even think about moving your hands, you can rest assured that I will kill you! Third, why are you here and is there anyone else with you?"

I knew there was a good chance he would lie to me, so was cautions, always checking over my shoulder.

"It's just me Khai. You have to chill out, man."

I pushed the blade harder against his throat. "I don't want these "friendly remarks" dammit. Just give me answers!" I barked.

"Fine, it's only me and I came here to help you. Sheesh, your at a party, cant you just have fun."

"I was enjoying myself, before you came along. As for the "your helping me" thing, your so full of bullshit."

At any point of a sort of interrogation, you have the slightest paranoia that they are telling the truth. Right now my gut told me he was.

"Really? Don't you remember? I healed you from fighting with Jun at the Equalist compound, first time we met. I also helped you escaped, wasn't the luxurious way of freedom but it was freedom." Arann said.

I lightened up on the blade, he was right. He had healed me, even though it involved that damned drug. He had helped me escape even though it was through the horrid sewers. Mind mind was at war with itself, I couldn't make up my opinion about him.

I eased up more, I stepped back to give him some breathing room but the combat knife was still out. Stained with a slight trickle of blood. Arann to his time to wipe the blood from his neck, only leaving behind a smeared crimson stain.

"Why are you helping me?" I asked. I had also eased up on my tone.

"To warn you. Everything is going to happen so quickly, you won;t have time to react. Everybody's mobilizing Khai, and you won't see it coming."

My heart pounded harder. I didn't like showing fear but it was written all over my face.

"Who coming? Who's mobilizing?"

"Everybody! The Pride, the Equalists, the war. Your father and your brother, you can't escape this." He said. Arann's tension seem to make its way into his words.

My heart sank deep into my chest. I didn't know what to believe now, I didn't want to believe it but I knew deep inside me that it was true. A cold darkness, seemed to take place in my stomach. My death was coming, and I knew I wouldn't be able to survive by myself. I needed help.

"Your brother. My friend."

"What about him?" I asked plainly. My voice had turned from a hostile anger, to a neutral dull.

I couldn't even begin to process the amount of pain and fear I was holding back. I didn't want it. What was the purpose of it? To make us feel this way? Bullshit, there was no need for all of this.

"Don't hate him. It isn't his fault, he's not himself." Arann said.

"He tried to kill me, he wanted me to embrace hatred for it's feel and power, he's ruined my life by killing others, leaving me to fill that position of guilt. What fucking make you think, I'd let him live for that!?"

"There a much worse people in this world. Your brother is one of the bravest people I've ever met. There was a reason he didn't kill you during our brief meeting. The ability to watch me heal you, took much out of him. He's a bomb waiting to go off, with only himself being the casualty, he doesn't want that, yet his body can't resist. It's hard to explain but you can't live this way, or you'll end up like many, many others." Arann said.

My breathing began to get deeper and heavier, my whole body was at war with itself. Death was coming for me and I needed to get everyone out. Kya, Ruan, there actions shouldn't be blamed for my association.

"They have sent death squads after you, do what you have to do to survive but when it comes time you face your brother, show a little mercy because the outcome has already been set. Good luck Khai and enjoy the party." Arann finished.

He reached in his suit, pulling out a gas canister and tossed it casually in front of him. I would have gone after him but after hearing what he had to say, I couldn't. A light explosion followed by an alarming speed of green gas filled the air. I put my sleeve over my mouth, trying not to ingest the noxious gas. There was no escaping it. In seconds it had covered more then half of the courtyard and soon it would attract more attention.

I cough a bit, gagging for air, it didn't seem to stop. My eyes watered but for only a short period of time, it wasn't as toxic as war gas but still annoying to fight. Only used for escapes and Arann had used that purpose. He was nowhere in sight, no footsteps could be heard nor himself coughing, which had been unusual because he had not been wearing a gas mask, as other Equalists have.

As the gas cleared, so did my airways. I could breathe, allowing me to visually see that nothing had changed but his disappearance. My weapon was still with me but I wish it hadn't been.

"Khai?"

I turned around to see a frightened Kya, horrified to see my combat knife had been drawn. She hadn't even known I had one on me.

"What's going on, whats with the knife?" She asked, a little frustration had fused into her voice.

I tucked in my blade, still choking on my sentences, I didn't know what to say or rather what I didn't want to say but she needed to know.

"Kya. We have to leave, now!"


	30. Femme Fetale Pt 1

**Kya and Khai  
><strong>

I couldn't help but to curse at it all. My mind in utter darkness, my fears coming to life, that's was it. It was all coming in now. No, I wouldn't drag her to my level, I wouldn't get her involved. My sole duty was to get her out of here know matter what the case. I was already running towards the front entrance, not even noticing that Kya had been clawing at my hand, trying to break free. I couldn't stop, I wouldn't let my guard down again.

"Khai stop! What the hell is the matter with you?" She demanded.

I couldn't blame her for being furious with me. The fact that I was pulling her from a night that was unforgettable was completely unacceptable. At least not without some level of information on what was going on.

"Kya please, I'll tell you everything but now we have to get your outta here. I don't want you to end up like me." I said.

I pushed my way through guests, darted down halls and through corridor, nearly toppling over the waiters. Silver trays of food would crash to the ground, sending little bits of food everywhere. I was cursed at as I past further down but their "common courtesy" was the least of my problems.

"Excuse me, pardon me, move, get out of my way!" I shouted running down the halls.

"Khai stop!"

"Kya, you must understand!"

"Understand what? Your not telling me anything!"

Heads turned even before they could hear us yelling. Seeing a couple of people running down the hall in a party as formal as this one wasn't really normal. If anything, it could cause a real problem for security.

I made my way through through crowds, passing by the grand dining hall where Porter and his team ate in "celebration" of the new task force.

_Dammit! I forgot about Johnathon! _I thought, cursing to myself.

Truth was, I just wanted to get Kya to safety but I had completely forgotten about him. I could have used his help. I had finally gotten to the front entrance when Kya and tugged her hand free of my grasp, causing me to panic in thought that she had been pulled away.

"NO! Tell me, what the fuck is going on Khai?" She asked.

My head turned rapidly toward the door and to Kya, not sure what was more important. Seeing as I hadn't had much of a choice, I had to tell her something.

"Alright look, I can't tell you much but here the basics. People are coming to kill me, Equalist, The clan, my family, EVERYBODY! I don't want you around to endure such a bloodbath. I need to know that your one hundred percent safe at all times, I can't have you evolved in this!"

By the time I had finished, I had found my hands around her arms, pressing down hard. I instantly let go. Kya's face went pale at the news, her eyes dimmed and I could feel her fear, see it in her eyes. I wrapped my arms around her, and her head buried into my chest.

"I can't loose you. I don't want to see you get involved in my battles." I whispered to her.

"Khai. We can get solve this together, we don't need to.."

"No!" I interrupted her, pulling her directly in front of me, our eyes locked with the same amount of fear and confusion.

"Out of the question, I'm in to deep to bring someone else down here. Especially not you."

A few more seconds and we were still frozen, I waited for her reply which resulted in a mild head nod. We rushed towards the door again, finally out of the building and out of the Gala. We hopped down the steps, our breath nearly visible from the cold air. It was late and yet there were still people trying to get in. Our mild disturbance seem to get the securities attention. Just enough for some other unwanted guests to run in the building, but they wouldn't last long.

"Taxi! Hey Taxi! Damn, they're never around when you actually need one. Hey, hey!" I shouted.

The air turned into a misty white, as my breath shot into the air like fire benders dragon breath technique. Her eyes brightened up, taking it as a good omen. Eventually after a few more times of nearly destroying my voice, a green and black satomobile pulled up. The driver was a thin man, wearing a tattered brown jacket, a brown beret, and a green scarf.

"Where can I take ya?" The man asked.

I opened the door for Kya, instantly slammed with the smell of dark tobacco, her thoughts were as good as mine. Her face quivered at the stench, it was unbearable but the man looked like he needed the money.

I got in and Kya had already told the man her address.

"Wait, that's pretty far, do we have enough money?" Kya asked me.

I slammed my fist on my legs in anger, we had been in such a rush, I had forgot about the cash. I looked up, seeing the man's dark, aggravated eyes starring at me. I could tell he didn't give joyrides, he needed full compensation.

"_Well,_ do ya bud?" He asked, just as aggravated as I predicted.

I searched through my pockets, picking out quite a few yuans. "How far can you get to the address with 52 yuans?" I asked, holding the money out.

The man's eyes, reflected the payment. Snapping out of the trance he took the yuans and looked forward. The satomobile started up, the engine growled to life, sending a puff of black smoke our of the rear exhaust pipe.

"Let's find out."

Captain Sven stood sourly as he watched his whole career drive off in some busted up taxi satomobile. Seeing an Equalist at the party made him sick and disrespect all that he worked for. He walked down a couple of steps and pulled a young private, metal bender, to the side.

"Private, what is protocol for all guests?"

"Sir, protocol states that all guests must be under watch, until acceptance unto the event has occurred, sir." He explained nicely.

"And if they're absent from the Gala?" Sven added.

"Sir, then all regulations apply to civilian life, sir!"

"Then gather your squad and get after that taxi, there's a damn Equalist in our district!"

* * *

><p><strong>Delun and Monna (15 minutes before the accident)<br>**

The two clans members walked side by side. Rooftops on rooftops, they casually walked along the cities skies, finally reaching a dead end. They hadn't been wearing their traditional clothes but rather a large brown coat. Snow coats, that covered their head in a white, comfortable polar bear fur. It was a thick hood that protected against the most dangerous of blizzards, traditionally worn by water benders.

They wore face masks to protect themselves of the stinging wind that nipped at them fro such a high altitude. Monna had worn goggles, while Delun was to stubborn to put them out, saying it had mess with his "field of vision".

The freezing cold air had sliced at their coats, just as vicious as any blade. Monna wouldn't lie, being a fire bender sounded much more comfortable and had wished that she had gone with Mao or Geming, even though they both creep her out just as equally. She had never worked with Delun before, he was always off by himself. All she knew was that he was a water bender, nothing more. No history, no info on his friends or family, if he had any at all. Or even where exactly he came from. He was a closed book.

She often found him talking to himself, either praying or communicating with someone else. Thing was, they were the only two climbing the skyscrapers of Republic City.

They both had stopped at a dead end. Monna put one foot on the ledge of the building and looked over at the traffic of a four way intersection. It seemed like miles below them, a chasm that only ended with the scum of the city.

Monna snapped around at Delun and yanked down her black face mask.

"What the hell, I thought this was it?" She asked. Delun calmly pull down his mask as well.

"It is" He replied.

"Oh really? Sure doesn't look like it." She stopped to look down at the oncoming traffic, the sounds of horns honking at one another had occasionally blasted back and forth. Another way of giving someone the middle finger.

"I thought you had a good informant?" She said, questioning him again.

"Patience. My informant is well informed of this guys location."

"How come nobody else of The Pride has met him?"

Delun hated it when others questioned him. His ability to contact the spirit world was hard to explain, he had always been able to do it from birth but he needed complete concentration.

"My client is, hard to reach. I need to get a hold of him when my bodies at its most neutral state." Delun finished and breathed in. His eyes close he began to contact his spirit, he had summoned a long time ago. His whole body felt numb, he was reaching his state of peace. The only sound was of the wind whistling and slicing the sides of his coat.

"So where is he?" Monna said, completely braking the silence.

"He'll get here when certain others learn to shut up."

Monna snuffed him out. If she hadn't been wearing the goggles, he could probably see her dark glare she was giving him. Delun had regained his state of mind, his mouthed moved but no words came out. However something more serious did.

His body warmed to an amazing temperature. His eyes changed from a dark brown to a dark yellow, his breath had changed from an icy cold to a desert hot, and at that point, Monna could plainly see that Delun wasn't with her anymore. The demon had taken over Delun but with very little power as he would be in a human body. Monna's heart raced as the consumed man pulled up his face mask, over his blood curdling grin.

_Remember, your powerless until we get what we want. So don't think about taking my body for a joyride_, Delun said. Communicating within the same mind was a better way to achieve pure privacy from the world. The demon closed his eyes, now locked inside Delun's mind, they could basically see one another.

_I'm very where of my abilities human, now why are we here? Do I have to remind you of our purpose, the reason you keep calling out to me. _The Demon replied.

_Yes, we both have the same goal. Right now, I'm just killing two birds with one stone. _Delun said.

_This scroll was written by the thirteenth Avatar! The ability for demon to reenter the human world and do whatever the hell it wants. That! Is our goal, Delun._

Monna watched in confusion as the demon had a continuous conversation with itself or at least that's what she saw from her point of view. She looked down, out in the traffic. Satomobiles buzzed by, horns blared over the sounds of one another, just to tick each other off. Monna actually saw some humor in this. A slight chuckle and a devilish grin, it would be fun to go down and cause some havoc._  
><em>

The argument was over, the demon was in slight control but Delun could pull itself back into his own body whenever he needed to. Delun's body walked over to the edge, starring at the illuminated streets below, he spotted his goal and pointed.

"What?" Monna said, trying to find what he was pointing at.

"That vehicle, I want it! Get it!"

"Uh, sure. Crashed? Pulled over? Hijacked? We have a special today on total pile ups, would that work?" Monna asked sarcastically. She had completely forgotten about their main goal was capturing Khai. She just wanted to destroy stuff, to have a little fun and reminisce about her old job with drugs.

"Anything! Just don't destroy its cargo!" The demon demanded.

The scroll of purging was his goal. It was like a priceless artifact, scavenged by explorers at the southern air temple. It's powers were unknown but for any spirit that wanted power, this was it. The ability to clash forces of good and evil, to combine the real world with the spirit world and to recreate a hell on earth. When the demon was actually alive, he fought against the thirteenth Avatar but failed to defeat him, causing him his life. The demon, when in human form, had the same abilities as Delun. He contacted the spirit world and had been corrupted by another spirit, and when the avatar found out, he forbid the ability. Banishing him from his service and from the town that would eventually become the fire nation capitol. When the avatar had asked for guidance from the good spirits, he was given an option to seal the demon in a scroll or to kill its possessed victim. The Avatar immediately chose the scroll in time for the final fight but the demon had latched on to tightly to the man's soul, dragging both of them in their eternal imprisonment in a blinding blue flash. All that remained was a hollow corpse of the man, that is now the demon, that lies within Delun.

Monna jumped from the building. The speeds of wind would had fogged up her goggles but she had used her water bending to deteriorate that effect. Her speeds increased but she stayed in form. Her body, absorbed in a stream of water that she had conquered up from just the air, had taken her in. Absorbing the affects that would have caused her to originally crash into the pavement.

Shooting herself out, the water froze underneath her feet and she slid down the flattened ice, until reaching the streets. From that point, she was pretty concealed. There were no people on the sidewalk, no sirens going off, and no metal benders. Reaching the edge of the street, her plans were already set. The white beat up van, approached at a rapid pace. The driver was clueless on what was going to happen.

At the same time, the demon inside Delun looked outward, seeing a green and black cab in the middle of intercepting traffic, going head on with the van. He was truly going to kill two birds tonight.

* * *

><p><strong>Khai and Kya<br>**

The stench of the tobacco was unbearable. Part of me wished that we had actually been walking with a giant sign over us saying "Equalists here!" I could see the pain on Kya's face, her night had been ruined, and I couldn't blame her. She had been starring out the window in oblivion, the buildings and pedestrians walked by but her eyes didn't move. She actually took awhile to blink, which was incredible because the odor had been burning my eyes.

She didn't make a sound and neither did I. The fury of it all and I and planted that seed inside her. I felt horrible, my only option was to take her home and hope that this all blows over, if I'm still alive.

"Hey do ya guys mind if I smoke?" The driver asked.

"NO!" We both barked.

The simultaneous shout had seem to wake us up. The cab drivers eyes could be seen on the rear view mirror, almost as if in a panic. His worried eyes drifted off us and back onto the rode. Kya seem to noticed me again, felt like it was the first time we had ever met and we both cracked a smile.

"Uh, right. So, you guys at a party or somethin'? Dressed like it." The driver asked.

"Yea we were at the Gala Event." Kya responded.

"No kiddin'? What are you two some sort of politicians or sometin'? Can't be just regular ole folk, now can ya?" He asked. His speech began to get sloppy. It mimicked those, especially those of a lower class.

_Amazing. He has no idea who I am? _I thought. It was amazing, poor or not, this guy had not recognized me. He was young, too young to be on his own like this and yet here he was, making a living.

"Do you not recognize me?" I asked.

"Should I?" He responded.

Kya looked at me in concern, she didn't know what I was up to specifically but she had an idea. The kids eyes appeared in the rear view mirror again, squinting to get a good look at me. They were a misty blue color, nearly white. They looked like they wanted something more, something greater then his life now, his eye looked sad but her personality said otherwise.

I didn't know how he would react when I told him who I was. A thought went through my head, telling me I was crazy for even acknowledging him but another thought had prevented that idea from becoming an action. The intercepting thought told me that ignoring the man, was a sign of cruelty. A sign that my father would have given me if I had encountered anyone less then professional, no matter what occurrence.

"I am Khai, the Equalist."

Five simple words that would have put anyone into a state of shock. Even the words to me had a slight fear effect on people, including myself. I didn't like saying them but it was the truth. If I needed help, I need to know that they have my back. They need to know that we can trust each other. Truth was the most valuable thing in times of great deception. However, truth was always the first casualty of war.

Kya turned to me, as if she was about to speak. Her mouth opened to intercept my sentence but said nothing, no words had escaped her mouth. We only waited for his response.

"Who?" The man said plainly.

"Uh. Khai the Equalist. The "fugitive of the Equalist party", that one."

The man looked back at me, his eyes still squinting, back tracking off to watch the road. After a couple seconds of driver over potholes and manholes in the ground he began to chuckle.

"I'm sorry man, but I don't know who you are, never heard of ya nor seen ya. As for the Equalist thing, ah could really care less. It your choice, it's not what ya choose that makes ya a bad person, if that was what you were gettin' at. It's how you effect others. Same goes for different nations, religions, philosophies, ways of thinking, or if ya human or not. It's how ya put yourself out there that determines your output on life."

I was shocked out of my mind. So many people, famous people, powerful people, hated me for what I stood for. I was never an Equalist to begin with, but yet people still judged me on my past. Yet here's this young man, poor and working hours for scraps and he still views me as a human. He's not obsessed with money or he would have never let me ride for the pocket change I was carrying. He wasn't with the Equalists nor against them. Out of all the major people in this city, this guy, a taxi driver, was the symbol of peace that I had wanted for everyone. Is this really whats become of true peace?

"Oh by the way, names Hakku, how are ya two this evening?" Hakku asked.

Kya and I starred at each other for a brief second, our ears couldn't believe what we had been hearing. Our faces lit up, our minds were one and we could probably speak through them, they were so alike.

"We're good." Kya said.

"Nice, nice." He responded.

The night went on in peaceful silence. Our hands held tightly together as we scooted closer to one another. We talked with the driver more, finding out he was actually fifteen years old, working for his family, whose father had died years ago. Hakku was a kind and compassionate man, he explained to us his life with ease, as if his was perfect. Now that I look back on mine, I feel as if I had been selfish. I should be glad I was even given a life to begin with, that's how Hakku saw it. Yet he hadn't had the greatest job in the world but he was happy. He changed the way I saw things, even the way I saw Porter. When we had fist met, I had judged him to be some arrogant man, here to change the lives in our city. My feelings had changed for him over time, seeing as how he helped me with so much, basically surviving! Yet I still saw him as a different person, and that right there needed to change. It's time I made emends.

A shrill scream in the night had paralyzed me. Soon enough we were swerving left and right, it was like we were riding on ice. A large white van had smashed hard in the satomobile in front of us. Horns blaring in the night, people shouting, and death laughing. The family like satomobile in front of us had been absorbed in flames. Leaving the white armored van, with mere dents. He had no control, as his car pushed what was left of the satomobile into the front entrance of a nearby bookshop. Flames began to erupt, as other cars began to swerve and crash.

"Shit!" Hakku shouted.

"Khai!" Kya said, trying to latch onto my arm.

The vehicle was tossed around like nothing, our head constantly hit the back of our seats. Soon after the sirens of other cars had stopped, our world had just begun to turn. Hakku had lost complete control, our taxi had flipped over, skidding on the roof of the car. Spinning and dizziness, was my new world. Darkness had covered the sky, the intersection was in mass chaos. Flames had began to erupt from other cars, the satomobiles had been seeping flames from under the hood, followed by black smoke. The screams of others, trying to get out of there cars through their smashed car windows, had been silence by a bigger eruption of flames. Soon enough, after their engine had exploded, there corpses had remained to cook underneath the fire.

When our taxi had stopped rolling, it was like everything happened at once. My stomach churned, my body aches with cuts from broken glass. I couldn't even check on Kya, I wanted to but my body wouldn't move. My vision blurred and the only thing I could hear was the crackling of flames. Soon enough our engine would spark and that would be everything needed set us off from this world.

I moaned in great pain, I could barely move my body. My left arm was completely numb, I could someone move it, considering all it went through but its feeling was gone. I unhooked my seat belt and fell to what had used to be the roof.

I cursed under my breathe, a stinging pain had shot up my leg.

"Kya. Are you alright?" I asked. My breath was nearly suck out of my lungs, I often found myself gagging for air that had just not been there.

I couldn't understand what I was hearing, nor could I see. I tried to move but I pinned underneath something, something moving, something groaning. Before I had realized it was Kya, I thought it was the seat of the satomobile had fallen back and pinned me but unless the seat could breathe and moan, I realized my error.

I tried to slide out gently, my hands had been pressed against the shattered, bits of glass. Each time I tried to pull myself out, the glass dug hard and cut deep into my hands. It was either pain or death, and I wasn't going to let my poor choice kill Kya.

My hands pulled through tiny pools of blood, my hands scraped against the shards, leaving behind a light crimson smear, stained to the palms of my hands. They ached for freedom but as far as I could see there was none. Our windows hadn't been completely shattered, leaving a row of jagged razors to anyone who would try to climb out. Leaving the vehicle would only kill myself, I would tear my own torso to shreds. From the position I was in, I couldn't kick out the glass, my hands bled and begged for freedom, and the air began to thin, as smoke filled into the satomobile.

Hakku moaned for medical attention. His body laid, still in his seat, like a rag doll. His lifeless arms and crushed legs drooped down into a position of ultimate pain. I was in no position to move with Kya on top of me and the glass underneath. Hakku let out little cries of pain. Smoke had brushed up again his cheek to the point of it leaving behind a black burn stain. His cries got louder, then they would die out. His limbs dangled in pain, begging for freedom, I hadn't even noticed the large gash on the far side of his face. He looked at me through the rear view mirror, his dying spirit. lingered from this world and the next.

The car rocked, slowly it began to turn over with the violent intentions of having the glass fall onto me, and for me to fall on Kya. I couldn't do anything but let out a loud, yelp of relieving pain. Kya had done the same, she seemed to be regaining consciousness but her body still slumped against the door. The car rotated right side up, Hakku slumped back down, instead of hanging up side down from his seat beat.

I pulled myself onto the middle seat, my suit was shredded, stained, and full of smoke. Kya's was the same. I had a hard time pulling her up, her pale, motionless body laid against the car door and blood ran from her shoulders.

I could say the same for myself, I tried to get Kya back to me, positioning her face towards mine, I constantly called for her name. I hadn't realized that I had been leaving my bloody hand prints on her face and clothes but at this point I doubted she would care.

"Kya, please come back to me." I begged. Almost in the form of an argument between me and the unconscious body.

The car jerked again, throwing me to the middle seat. Horror grew in my eyes as the front windshield was completely gone but instead water had been rushing in. A painful speed that through itself all other the car, across my lap, covering Hakku's lifeless legs and Kya. The pressure of the water rocked the car, and we began to shake. The water had positioned itself perfectly around where the windshield had been and forcibly pushed outward, leaving behind a great big whole in the front of the car. I immediately recognized this as the bending of someone of great skill.

Seconds later, what seem to be a giant brown blob had been on the car hood. My vision was cloudy, spotted with both dressiness and water droplets.

"Well, I imagined much more of a fight for someone who's taken out two of us."

The distorted image in front of my had been clear. A member of the pride, a water bender, wearing a think brown blizzard jacket had been the only difference of life or death. As the water that flooded nearly half the car got colder, I could feel my heart trying to pump more and more blood.

"Please, don't." Hakku begged painfully.

His life was nearly gone, yet his heart wanted to pull through. His breathing became irregular, his heart often pounded in different rhythms, as if it was confused on its primary function in his body.

The clan member turned toward him and she knelt down and raised her hand. Se put her finger to her own lips and hushed quietly, as a coat of ice began to cover Hakku's face. He had convulsed violently, the ice had nearly drawn over his head like a mask. This mask however couldn't be removed. Soon enough his shaking body had stopped, it seemed like the worlds last bit of peace had been murdered. As the ice masked his face, his chest stopped moving. Eventually lowering back into his lifeless body, as he sat there and died.

I couldn't help but a single tear rush down the side of my face. It seemed the only bit of warmth I had felt since the water had entered. My breathing became heavy and visible.

"I'll, kill. You." I muttered. Trying to save any strength that the cold hadn't taken away from me.

"Khai. Your that little fucker that didn't want to stay out of our way. It's a shame, that your friend didn't die, you'll have to excuse Mao's incompetence. He's not the most skilled person of The Pride. More of a scout then anything."

My breathing strained my lungs. Seemed like every time I exhaled, I burned the inside of my throat. Felt like frost bite against my lips when it did come out.

"Who are you?" I choked out.

"Seems kind of like a pointless question in your position. However, it does seem appropriate to tell you, seeing as your not in any position to retaliate. My name is Monna of The Pride, and it's a pleasure to finally meet you." She said.

Her voice sound evil and cynical, her sarcastic greeting was just nerve aching to listen to as any other. However she was right, my body seemed lifeless with only my head to move. I could barely see as is and I just felt torn in general. Yet, all I could do was watch as she finally executed me.

The car shook again but this time it was Monna who look confused and scared. The water boiled under my lap, it was unbelievable how fast it heated up. It felt good, as if life was reentering my body. I could slowly begin to feel my toes as the water on my lap began to glow in a healing sense.

Violently, the water rushed out. Faster then any arrow or any heavy artillery I had ever seen. Monna hadn't been expecting it as he was literally smashed in the gut by the rushing water. It was almost like a fist that moved at impossible speeds, Monna flew backwards, her body disappearing into the night. I tured my head to an angry, rage filled Kya. Both arms forced up, her hair was split, she look psychotic. Blood ran down her lip, but the healing water underneath seem to be helping us both. Her arms dropped of exhaustion and she fell back against the door of the car, letting out a slight grin.

"Pleasures all mine, bitch."


	31. Femme Fetale Pt 2

**Khai and Kya**

I hadn't realized that I had passed out. I was so cold, the frost felt like it had been constantly whipping me with a thousand barbs all at once. At first I thought that I was actually dying, passing out and venturing out into the white light. However, unless the Spirit World was going through some traumatic ice age, I knew exactly where I was.

I hadn't realized how cold the outside, seriously, felt like 30 degrees dropped almost instantly. I could faintly hear the chaos that surrounded me. Satomobiles still blaring their obnoxious horns and the roars of fire consuming the leather interiors of the cars and devouring them.

It freaked me out knowing that I was surrounded by so much fire and yet I could still feeling this cold. I could hear screams, screams that sounded like the world was ending and after all that had just happened, it seemed like it was. So much damage for just a city block and yet I could hear the sounds of commands barked by metal bending police. Wouldn't be surprised if Captain Sven showed up and put an end to me now.

The ground shook horrendously. The cold, hard ground became soft. Freezing almost, as if Monna had changed the weather completely. My sight was becoming clearer, my ears rang back to life, and my limbs were as numb as ever. I'd hadn't even realized the snow falling from the sky, it coated the ground like a white jacket.

_Dammit.._ I'd honestly feel better on a bed of nails then this ice tundra.

The thing was the ground hadn't been shaking at all. My skin was so numb I couldn't even notice Kya shaking me back to consciousness until she started shouting.

"Khai! Khai! Get up for spirits sake!"

My mind was focused on her, I heard her words, I saw here lips moved, and I even tasted her fear. Yet, the only thing I could focus on was how beautiful she. looked with the snow flakes in her soft black hair. It was nice focusing on something other then hatred, _maybe there is still hope for me..._

I started to focus more on our situation. I sat up coughing my lungs out as if breathing in some noxious gas. The air was so cold it felt like my lungs were freezing from the inside. Kya must have dragged my through he snow, after slamming Monna with some water bending. She took cover behind a turned over 8 wheeler satomobile.

"What.. is this the same place we were before?" I said with horrific eyes. The nice night time evening had turned into a blizzard, and even the sky seemed to be lighter, as if blocked with a sheet of ice.

Ice hung from tree poles, snow banks formed on sidewalks and on overturned satomobiles. Metal bending wires wrapped around and hung down from street signs and traffic light, as if they were vines from a jungle.

"This is the same place Khai! We need to move, can you walk?" She said rapidly. Her words came out faster then she before she could even think of them, almost like instinct.

She sounded like she was in pain, she shivered violently and her breathing had become shallow and wheezy. It was so cold it could almost cause an instant frostbite.

_Frostbite... we need to move, now! _

"I'm-m, I'm fine. W-we need to move, are you okay?" I said getting to my feet.

"I wasn't the one unconscious" She said with a sarcastic grin. "But I'm fine, thanks. You'll be needing this, hero"

She handed me my K-Bar knife that Jonathon had given me before the Gala event had even started. I hadn't even realized that I had lost it, let alone even remembered that I brought it with me. We both were at our feet, bones felt hollow and fragile but we were fine. No, no it wasn't fine. Something was definitely wrong with my leg. It didn't function right and every step I took cause a shivering pain.

"Lets go" I said.

We started to move, slowly but we made progress. It was hard to navigate through all the wreckage. We navigated labyrinth of snow and satomobiles, almost trapped as the snow banks had been blocking the entrances to the building that had once been visible at the intersection.

_Shame, we could have use that for cover_

"I should've asked this sooner but did you even see where she went?" I asked.

"No" She wrapped her arms around her body, tormented by the sheer wind that felt like blades rubbing against her skin. "I-It was ove-over just as quickly as it star-started"

She began to occasionally gasp. It was obviously hard for her to breathe. I hated seeing her in so much pain. I vowed to keep her safe from The Pride and yet the whether was the only enemy that had been slowly killing her. My suit was torn and ripped but it was something. Putting it over her shoulders seemed so much simpler in my head but it felt so awkward.

I had given her a torn suit, and in return I had received only pain. A suit that I had endured all my life and this time it couldn't be taken off. I had only the bottom part of my suit and my white undershirt. My tie was gone and I hadn't even thought anything of it. Kya smiled at my friendly gesture, her blue eyes never looked so pale and so gorgeous.

"I wish I could offer you more"

"Khai, you've done a lot for me already, you need to stop blaming yourself. In fact, I feel warmer already"

I couldn't help but smile, she was so full of confidence, so much joy in her. She warms the coldest of emotions. I chuckled.

"Don't lie" I said with a grin. She chuckled back. Her shivering was the number one face that gave it away.

"Well, if you want to offer me more, how bout we do something when this craziness is all over?"

"What? You don't like getting frostbite and being hunted by a psychopath?" I said laughing. I wrapped my arms around her body, it slowed us down but sharing the body heat seemed more important.

Each step we took sounded like we were walking on leaves. Crunching after crunch sounds beneath us sounded as if our bones were ready to completely shatter. I cupped her hands in mine, breathing in them occasionally so we could feel the blood in our fingertips once more. The feeling only lasted for a brife moment but I think I kept doing it just to be close to Kya. Funny thing was, she caught on fast.

"Not r-really" she said giggling. I could hear her teeth chatter, her jaw vibrated uncontrollably.

"Don't wor-worry, we'll get out of here and then we can have that date, m-minus all this chaos" I assured her. However, I think she should be the one to be assuring me.

"I'd l-like that, what did you have in mind?" she asked. The wind blew more viciously, each curl was like a bone saw across my face. Each time a heavier wind started to blow I would cover Kya's face with my hands, shielding her from the razor like blows. My lips were chapped to the point where if I moved them slightly without licking them, they would crack and bleed. However, the warm blood would feel nice in an environment like this.

Echos of voices grew louder in the distance but my mind was on getting us out of here, or at least Kya.

"Well I was thinking about getting some ice cream, maybe some sh-sherbert?" I said, attempting to laugh. The air was so thin, I had choked on my own breath. She stopped walking and looked up to give me a long annoyed glare. It was the good kind of look. One that she'd cherish and we could both look back on and laugh.

It frightened me how powerful one member of The Pride could do so much damage. The cool night time sky didn't help at all, but it was perfect for Monna's assault.

I had been very alert, knowing little about The Pride, other then the fact that they want me dead, is that some travel in pairs. The first time I had met the sand benders they were in three's. The time Ruan was assaulted by Mao, another had shown up. It was at the end but he could have easily finished him off, if Porter hadn't arrived..

Time had passed and the blizzard hadn't let up. We walked on in the snow that didn't seem to stop falling. It piled up, getting deeper for every step we took. The crunching sounds beneath our feet and our shivering whimpers began to echo in our head. It hadn't been long until we found the eight wheeler satomobile that had initiated the crash in the first place.

This was no ordinary Sato Industries machine. This was heavy duty, top gear stuff. The type of machinery that the United Forces would use to transport new technology, important chemicals, or weapons. What the hell were they transporting? United Forces couldn't be here, could they? No, United Forces soldiers aren't permitted to patrol the streets of Republic City. That law had been imbedded almost immediately after the end of the great war.

But what was it?

I didn't know what creeped me out more, the turned over eight wheeler that looked like an ice fortress or the giant hole in its back doors. In fact, those back door hadn't looked like they were even attempted to be opened. The hole hadn't been a perfect cut either, indicating that it hadn't been cut open with any tools.

The rim of the hole had been jagged. Some strips of metal even hung down like it was burned or something. It had been melted. I need a second glance because they had began to freeze over, turning into icicles.

_Fire bender.. Mao!_

My body fueled with anger. Even Kya was nervous, as I had began to squeeze her hands to tightly.

"Sorry" I said.

"What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, thought I heard something is all"

What was a lie became something I hadn't hoped for. In fact their was a sound, metal scraping against metal, a rusty screeching sound that echoed throughout the whole block. The ground began to shake and before I knew, the labyrinth of destroyed satomobiles began to change.

The snow banks shook, but it wasn't the snow that was being controlled. The snow had been shaken, it's rapidly shifting, white powdery flakes fell from the vehicle only to land in the spot that it once laid. The wrecked satomobile had been suspended in mid air, only by the power of bending. A nice product of Sato Industries to, tossed aside like a mere pull of junk. Only to stop by crashing through the front window of a Zhao's Curry restaurant.

My heart skipped a beat. Seeing Captain Szen and two other metal benders at this point of my escape with Kya was basically the spirit world giving me the middle finger. Bad luck seemed to stick with me, and being apart of an Equalist family and all, I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't come down to our world themselves and finish me off.

"See what you cause Equalist?!" Captain Sven shouted.

"Khai it's that one guard from the Gala" Kya said astonishingly.

I cursed to myself, I was in no position to fight. Basically carrying Kya, dying from frostbite, and was just nearly out of breath to. However, it looked like Sven was in just as much pain as I was. The two metal benders behind him were alert but shivering, there armor nearly covered in a thin sheet of ice. Layered plates of steel shattered the ice during movement.

Captain Sven was in the same predicament as they were. His face was scarred, probably from the battle with Monna. His facial hair was nearly stained white and his armor couldn't have been in worse shape.

"No mercy huh?" Sven chuckled a hazy laugh, he sounded winded. "Just like I'm going to show you!"

I could barely do anything at this point. Sven lashed out, sending a metal coil and bended it around my neck. I had just enough energy to push Kya into the snow so she wouldn't be hit but Sven was much stronger then I had anticipated.

His coil had brought me to the snowy ground. My legs were completely hidden within the white powder. I gagged for what air I had left but Kya had saved me. It was her turn, thrusting her arms, she liquified the snow. She made whips of her own, sharp enough to snap the metal coil into four pieces. She saved up one more blow for the captain's chest but had her arms immediately ensnared by the two other MB's coils.

The Captain stumbled backwards but was not even close to finishing up. Shot sprung another coil out from his other wrist. It wrapped tightly around my arm and he reeled me in like a fish. I had no control, his bending was much to strong. I ended up being dragged through the snow and slush that hid beneath, all to come up to Sven's fist, hammering against my jaw.

"Khai!" Kya screamed, still wrestling to break free of the metal coils. Every chance she got to bend was only yanked away from her unsuspectingly from a new direction that pulled her.

_Dammit! Get up you useless, son of a bitch! _As negative as those thoughts were, they motivated me.

He pulled me up one last time but with the momentum I had as he yanked me up, I got a little payback. The back of my fist slammed into his noes, knocking him backward but I didn't stop there. Sven tried to defend my charge with a more offensive barrage of fists but he was to sloppy. Tackling him, we both fell into the snow. I put my knee into the breaking point of his chest plate. A piece of armor that seemed to be weakening from severe chill in the air.

Left, right, then left again. My fists slammed into his face one by one. His defense was useless as he weakly tried to bring his hands up to stop be. Occasionally pressing his palms into my face but I quickly countered with a palm strike to his elbows, temporarily crippling his arms. My blood flowed like high tides in an ocean, I couldn't remember the last time I had an adrenaline rush this big. So much power, it felt so great. It had made me completely forget about the cold.

_You idiot! This is the type of person your trying to avoid becoming! Ease up and save Kya!_

A battle in my own head, dammit I knew I would end up becoming this. _I must stop!  
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It wasn't easy but someone I managed to control my anger. I could've sat there and killed that man for spirits sake and for what? He had a wrong idea of me, killing him would've just made me look like the enemy. It was at this point I had remember that I still had my KA-BAR. If I had remember it during my breakdown, who knows what path I would've ended up taking.

I ran towards the MB, stamping my foot in the back of his leg, he went down automatically, instantly recoiling his catch o Kya. Kya seized this opportunity to use her free hand to bend a wave of snow into the other metal bender's face. He flew sideways into a snowbank but ended with a bang. His head had hit a frozen metal door of a satomobile, knocking him out cold.

My MB elbowed me in the hip but I didn't go down easily. A slight shift in my stance and a single utter grunt but I was find. I caught his recoiling wire, I stretched it out and wrapping it around his neck. The man chocked and gagged as he tried to pull free. He tried to peel the coil off, his fingers attempted to dig between his neck and the coil, which he could've bended easily if he had more energy.

Saliva flew from his mouth, gagging and chocking until it became quiet. He soon became immobile and collapsed. First time chocking out an MB but soon he would be back, that is if the sheer frost didn't get him first.

"Kya are you alright?"

She flew into my arms, a couple tears rolled down her face but other then that she was fine.

"Khai?" She asked.

"yea?"

"I'm cold as hell"

We both laughed, we needed a way out and right now things weren't looking good for us.

"Allow me to be of some assistance!"

We both turned around to see a bloody and bruised Captain standing on both of his feet. His metal wrists gloves had been bended into wrist blades. He had a crazed look in his eyes. His armor was mainly frost at this point, covered with a smear of crimson which I identified to be blood. Half of his face was red, while the other side pale but he wasn't going down without a real fight.

"You know, I hear it's pretty warm in hell. Let me escort you!" The Captain said.

At that point me and Kya were ready for one last battle. A fight to end all fights with this guy but he paused. His expression of anger was masked with a layer of anxiety. He wasn't looking at us anymore, no. We were the least of his worries at this point. In fact his eyes weren't even on us, rather above us. It was a good choice to pick to.

A man wearing a large snow jacket and goggles had been sitting on top of the downed eight wheeler. His mouth covered with a black mask and his snow hood his his hair. However, the pure terror of it all was his laugh. A mild, yet seriously condescending laugh that echoed in my head. On his left hand was a mechanized gauntlet, the other was a normal glove.

"Gotta come prepared when your in this type of weather, eh?" The man said. Kya and I stood frozen, anxiously waiting for him to attack. He was disguised but I think I had a pretty good idea who it was.

It wasn't Johnathon that's for sure, he would've arrived in more style then this guy.

"Although, I didn't really plan for the whole snow storm deal. I guess that's just Monna's way of improvising" He said laughing.

"Your with Monna?" The captain said. His tone was weak, he couldn't have sounded more worried. "The you're..."

"Delun of The Pride, at your service! _Well_, not really"

Understanding the position Captain Sven was in he began to look extremely frantic. His personal goal was to stop me at all costs and other Equalists as well. However with a member of The Pride standing no less then 15 feet from him, catching this terrorist was his all on the line with his job. Not only would it mean a promotion and a better pay raise, once he finished off one enemy he could focus on another. Catching both a terrorist and an Equalist could mean big money for him but as always, greed is one of humanities greatest weakness.

"You happy Equalist?! Your kind brings all this damn destruction and chaos! You can never be happy unless us benders are dead! So why the hell would you turn another bender against his own kind?!" Sven shouted.

_This mortal is very inconsiderate, so caught up in his own glory that he can't see his own greed and selfish desires._

The entity inside Delun's head spoke softly but with wise words.

_You know he's going to attack? It's written all over his boney face_

Delun only smiled at the entities thoughts. He mind possessed two beings, one of which being very good at reading emotions.

Just as the spirit predicted, Sven attacked. Rebending one wrist blade back into a coil, he ensnared Delun's mechanical hand. However, he didn't even move nor did he counter. He stood like a statue as Captain Sven tried to reel him in but failed, only wasting more of his energy and more of Delun's time.

"Oh, so unwise" Delun said.

He angled his hand so only a glass circle to be seen in his palm. A few seconds later, blasts of electricity flew from the glove. A fire powers bender in the palm of a water benders hand. He laughed maniacally. The spark were so unruly, he couldn't care less where they went, not that it was predictable. It was a prototype, stolen from an Equalist ship during a Pride raid for better tech.

I dove into Kya, knocking us both to the freezing snow. We sank deep, nearly avoiding the over charged stun gauntlet. The lightning passed through the metal coil with ease, hitting Sven. He roared in pain, his suit of frost shattered at once, revealing the old and cracking metal bending armor he truly had on. His coil snapped, the charge was so powerful it had completely shattered it in many pieces. Sven's body stood for a few seconds, smoke rising from his mouth and hair. A single cough was the only noise he uttered until he fell and sank into the deep snow.

The energy was outstanding. Only one blast and the heat had nearly melted the back end of the truck. Scorch marks bled right through the heavy armored transport. It had even scuffed up the back of my shirt, leaving black scorch marks going up and down. Suddenly the cold didn't seem so bad anymore, the charge seemed to have warmed up the air a little bit but it wasn't long until the air became cold once more.

Kya and I starred helplessly at the Pridesmen. His glove still hot and smoking, the rising exhaust fumes fogged his goggles but it seemed like he had no problem seeing. His eyes scanned the snow, searching of any signs of a surviving Sven. He didn't really care if he _had _killed him or not his prize was already claimed. Now he just needed to wait and be patient.

"You two can get up now" Delun said starring down at us.

It was one of those awkward moment where you were face to face with your enemy and yet you don't know what to say. In fact he didn't say anything in the beginning. He mainly concentrated on the cool down of his weapon. What did I do? Stood there, watching. For all I knew he could've killed us both, we were nearly at the brink of death as is. I had no idea what to do.

"I have no quarrel with you" He said, still attentive with his glove.

"That's hard to believe seeing your group's goal is to kill me"

An arrogant smirk grew underneath his mask. "The goal of the group is to promote bending supremacy" A couple clicks sounded off from the glove and it return to its fully operational state. It had been modified to stun on touch but with a few changes by the Pride specialist Sento, it could be used at an overcharged state frying anything in its path.

"MY goal however is completely different and doesn't concern you" Delun finished. I hadn't noticed it before but the around his should was a tube casing, usually made to hold maps or important army blueprints. It hung around his should from a black velcro strap.

His fingers tapped repeatedly on the tube casing. He had his prize and I knew where it had come from.

"You did this didn't you. You caused the crash all for what? A damn map?" I shouted.

Delun's expression did sound any different, nor did he act aggressively.

"Necessary lives must've been taken"

"You sick bastard!"

_All those people murdered, so many innocent lives lost. Why is peace so hard to grasp?_

He wasn't phased a bit. Not for a moment did he shed a little discomfort, he got what he wanted and he was smart. There was no purpose in showing his concern for me. Ice cold winds whipped across the skies, almost as if a blizzard had been created. Delun looked to the sky and slung the casing over his shoulder.

"I look forward to seeing you again, if you survive the weather"

He stepped back, disappearing into the white void the surrounded the both of us. This time I just wanted to leave. I got Kya standing up and we both set out into the frozen city. Monna's power was unlike that of any other. We had cleared the city block and had entered the main streets. One long street covered in snow and ice. Monna had caused so much damage to this section of the city but the heart of her power laid in the middle of the city block. It wasn't as bad here, in the city streets. Weather wise is was warmer, cold but better then what we had been through. However, bodies of innocent civilians, metal benders, and Equalists laid dead across the quite streets.

"Why are there Equalists here? Where did they all come from?" Kya asked frantically.

"I don't know. It's like a whole other battle was taking place as we were in the center"

I grasped Kya's hand tightly, this street was a war zone. A frozen wasteland where the dead sleep in a coffin of ice. Their skin pale and frozen, gashes across their faces and their blood dry. At some point Kya swore she saw the frozen breath of a metal bender lying a snow pile. Running over to check his consciousness she found no signs of life in his body. From a distance his hair blew in the wind but upon a better and more clear view, he lie there with his throat slashed oped. The inside was frozen, covered in snow which repelled Kya's attention.

It had been a few minutes before she had told me what she had seen, but before that, she just walked in silence with this petrified look in her eyes.

It hadn't been a while before we heard screaming. A most terrifying, ear piercing ring, that made my hair stand up.

"Help please!"

Kya and I stopped. We starred at each other and waited again. We wanted to hear the scream once more, to make sure it was real. Thing was we both heard it the first time, fact is we were just to startled to move. We wanted to survive and this wasn't the way but then it came back.

"For spirits sake, someone! It hurts!"

We started to run. The screaming echoed throughout the skies. The cold wind slapped against my face as I ran. I had been in front of Kya so she wouldn't have had to suffer so much. It came from an alley way, one that I had been to when I still worked as a courier. This time is wasn't the same. We stopped in complete fear and disgust. We had no idea what it was, maybe a wounded metal bender or a civilian but no nothing like this.

In a state of panicked I told Kya to run and hide but even she was to frightened to. All that was visible to my eyes was a metal benders upper body, his armor drenched and stained with blood. I knew he we wouldn't save him, we couldn't. Not after a few second we could see his lower body stretched down the frozen pavement. His intestines laid perfectly still, knowing they would freeze in a matter of seconds. I stepped back and gagged, my stomach churned and moaned

Kya screamed, clasping her hands over her face, she whimpered at the gruesome sight. I spat on the ground, I had the sickly feeling like I needed to throw up but all I had was saliva. This sick part was realizing that is was a fresh kill.

Seeing Monna at the very back, practicing her bending on his blood, was an inhumane sight. She couldn't move it, only freeze it. His lower body armor was removed and his back split down the middle. She let it drip out, watching it slide down the MB's back, until she thought gruesome enough to freeze. It became his second skeletal structure, one made out of blood, protruding from his back.

She hadn't initially reacted to Kya's scream, although it was faint, she new we were here. She looked at us, she wore the same as Delun, minus the mask and her hood which she kept down. Her hair was stained white and her skin was paler then a ghosts.

"Run Kya!" I barked pulling her away from the sight.

Monna on the other hand was much more quick then I was. She thrusted both fists into the air, forming large pillar of ice protruding from the ground. A the very second I thought we were to late, the pillar turned to a stake which aimed for my chest. However it was intercepted by Kya, who had reverted it back into water. She bended it like a true master, throwing the water through the air and quickly sending it back in large ice shape barbs.

Monna didn't even react emotionally. She took the stance of an earth bender and she brought her fists to her sides and then pulled them back, shattering the barbs before they could even reach the upper part of the severed body.

She didn't even waste time. Unlike Delun, Monna wanted us dead, especially Kya. She pulled the entire snowy ground behind her and reverted it to a wave like state. The ground roared, as she rode the wave, decimating the bodies in ice and snow, she came right at us. Kya would hold her ground in any fight and right now was her moment. Her stance was of that of an earth bender, and threw her palms out.

Monna was thrown forward to her feet as the wave came to an abrupt halt. Kya sent the wave backwards into a hundred icicles. Disappearing into the darkness of the cold empty building.

"Bitch!" Monna screamed.

She pulled water from the snowy ground, send large flat sheets of ice our way. Kya responded with a wall of water, quickly freezing it to a transparent point where we took cover from all Monna's blows.

"Dammit I feel useless right now!" I shouted angrily. "We need to get out of here but I don't see any way possible"

"I've got my hands tied at the moment to but as we can see.." Her eyes widened in horror. "Khai get away!"

We flew in different directions, a crushing blow sent by a large glacier of ice. Monna was powerful, in a way she controlled the weather as well. She could make the snow fall from the sky, make temperatures drop below freezing, and freeze a human's blood. I wasn't sure how she was capable of this incredible power but I knew that fear will struck the heart of millions after they hear what a lone Prides member had committed.

My legs were ensnared in a blanket of snow, it quickly froze keeping me from moving at all. I looked over to Monna with her hands in the air, bending the snow on the ground to her advantage. Just like an earth bender, her element was now everywhere.

"Dammit!" I said, cursing louder at the pain as the snowing only crept up more of my body. Squeezing and constricting my bones, as if they would just shatter from the pressure.

Kya was enraged with Monna, she sent wave after wave of water into Monna but she had only been redirecting it. Water crashed into her stomach, continuously sending her back into the snow. I could hear her, oh how it made me suffer to hear her in such pain. If it wasn't for her distraction, I'd probably would been completely submerged in the blanket of snow. Not being able to break through snow was like not being after to break through fog. It came so naturally but with Monna's level of power, I was at an impasse.

She walked over to me, my arms barely free but I knew she wanted them out to make me suffer.

"If you would have just died like the others, we would've never have resulted in this" She laughed at my pain, her wicked blue eyes were enraged with her hatred of me. "And to think that all you had to do was perish in a snow storm, but no your a stubborn prick who thinks he can change this damned nation back to the way "The Avatar" wanted it to be"

She put her foot on my aching chest, and came closer to me. Her fingernails ran through my hair, digging harder into my scalp until I felt a trickling of blood run onto the snow. Her breath was just as cold as her heart, a frost biting sensation that slowly cut across my cheek. She was making me suffer. She was freezing my blood.

"Get the fuck away from him!"

A white tundra exploded from my chest. Many shards of ice that had once been crushing me had now ejected off of my torso and changed into a shard like structure. Monna was sent backward, in admiration of my blood she was horribly injured. A large stake of ice had pierced her shoulder and some smaller shards had dragged across her face. It left with a bloody face and a useless left eye. She laid in the snow in desperate pain, clutching her should, she load out disturbing wails.

I hadn't even had a chance to have gotten up, Kya was already on my chest, checking my body for any wounds.

"Khai! Please tell me your okay?" She said desperately as she put her hand under my head.

"I'm fine. Kya, she tried to freeze me from the inside out" I tried to stand but my legs wouldn't give in. I shouted at the pain, spiking up through my legs.

_She tried to freeze my blood, I'm so cold  
><em>

"You can't walk can you?" She asked.

"No, I can't"

A horrific laughter, followed by the rise of snow, had begun. The snow ascended into the air as a bloodied Monna got up from her painstakingly horrific injuries. The stake was still in her shoulder, taking it our would only cause further blood loss. Her eye dripped with blood. It ran over her lip, leaving tiny red dots in the snow. Other slips it would leak under her lips, which she would result in licking it off, for her own self pleasure.

"Now, I will bury you two fuckers in a white coffin together!"

The amount of snow that rose in the air was unbelievable, Kya couldn't even control the amount. It was like the time that Ruan and I were being persude by those sand benders. The amount of sand buried us up to our neck, and we wouldn't have been alive if it wasn't for Porter. Well I was back in this situation, and this time the love of my life was with me.

She couldn't do anything but bury herself into my chest. We were exhausted and no match for her. Her cold wet hair brushed against my face, accepting death with the love of my life never felt so peaceful.

Two ticks was all I heard. A silent but devastating impact on Monna. The first went into her other shoulder, a blood splatter that even she didn't like seeing. Another had gone into her forearm. THe snow collapsed but not on us. I fell slightly, as Monna stumbled back. Some bits of it landed on us, a light dusting was all that we felt. The rest landed all around us.

She screamed in pain. A noise that sounded just like that of the metal bender. Blood started to pour onto the snow, leaving a red river, pouring into the cities drainage pipe. She made her way back down the alley way. I lost sight of her. If I could recall it was a dead end, so she'd probably collapse of blood loss.

_heh heh, fuckin' karma_

The next thing I new I had Johnathon right by my side, kneeing right by me like Kya. He scanned my body for any visible remarks but all her saw was the pain in my eyes.

"He can't walk!" Kya exclaimed.

"Well then we'll have to get him out of here. Can you do anything for his legs now?" Johnathon asked.

"I'll try, my chi paths are pretty strained right now so I'll do my best but it might not be good enough"

"Doesn't matter, let's do all what we can" He shifted attention on me. "Hey buddy, what the hell happened man? First a fancy party and now a fuckin' blizzard? Shit man" He said laughing. We both laughed a bit. Kya's healing abilities had been working like charm and she wasn't at her full strength. Absolutely impressive, _I love her._

"Well then come suffer with me" I said._  
><em>

Johnathon snickered, "Let's just first get you home and in better care, good ol' CZ-75. Your lucky I had it suppressed, didn't want to attract any more of those fuckers"

"Hell man, where have you been?" I asked

"Busy, Khai, I've had my own shit to keep me occupied. Kya are you alright?" Johnathan responded with an exhausted gust of wind.

"Been better, could use a hot shower" She said, trying to keep her teeth from chattering.

"Man, if anything Ruan's the lucky one. If he had been invited as well, then he would have had to put up with all the shit we just did" I said.

"Yeah, and I don't feel like baby sitting him tonight" Johnathon replied.

We all laughed, things seemed to finally come to an end. We spoke about Monna, how she was apparently passed out at the end of the alley way from blood loss. We agreed to capture her, for interrogation purposes only. Knowing the locations of this other members and their leader could give us a major lead. My legs were getting better, Kya was an excellent healer. Leaning my head back to the sky, I can only thank the spirits that I we didn't die today.

* * *

><p><strong>Delun<strong>

_What a waste, she was to arrogant with her abilities. Why don't you go and save her? The other might get suspicious._

"NO, I do not care for her or the other, we only have one purpose. I'm surprised you even suggested that." He said._  
><em>

Delun starred down into the alley way from the building above and watched a dying Monna lay up against a pile of snow. He blood was absorbed into the snow, leaving her body with nothing but a red ring around her. She breathed slowly, her finally breathes being visible to herself. No matter what type of clothes she had on or the type of power she possessed, she was infuriated with herself by admitting she was cold.

_A tragic death, knowing you mortals you always get attached to things. Money, food, greed, lust, it's all the same with you. Mortals will fall and eventually the spirit world will rise to reclaim their once owned land, destroying anything in it's path._

"Your one to talk, claiming my body to become human again or rather immortal" Delun said._  
><em>

_No, remember, you called me here and to earn the same prize. So don't preach to ME about your wisdom of morality!_

Delun's head grew worrisome. It bulged but he felt no pain. He became disoriented but lost no stance. His vision blurred but he could still see the blood flowing from Monna's wounds._  
><em>

"You seek another don't you?" Delun said.

_HIM, the one that's not from our planet. He's not one of us, I can feel it, he's.. different._

The entity had guided Delun's attention towards Johnathon.

"You want him? What good can he possibly do for you?"

It didn't matter, before Delun knew it, the entity was gone. Passing through Delun's mind it whisked away into the air, just as the snow did. It didn't go far before realizing that Johnathon was like Delun. Their minds possessed another. The entity stopped, frozen in its track it hovered above Johnathon. Then entered.

* * *

><p><strong>Johnathons's Mind<strong>

_Who inhabits this vessel?_ The entity called out.

A large demonic growl called out to the entity but he only repeated himself.

_Who inhabits this vessel?_ The entity called out again.

_THE FATHER OF THE BROTHERHOOD NEEDS LITTLE INTRODUCTION FOR ONE SO PUNY. _

Soon enough the entity was faced to a creature which even he could not make sense of. A large slim figure, who's fingers stretched out of its long black hands. He wore black, and his face could not be recognized or even seen by the entity for that matter._  
><em>

_A demon as I? What power can you sustain to control a mind not from this world.  
><em>

Another monstrous growl called out to the entity_  
><em>

_THIS CHILD OF DARKNESS NEEDS LITTLE OF THEE. YOU ARE NOTHING. WE ARE EVERYTHING. TO BE INTRUDING IN THIS MIND IS A SIN UNFORGOTTEN!  
><em>

_I am the same as you, born in blood and from womb. Seeking a vessel to command for spiritual freedom. Tell me how your vessel came to this world?  
><em>

A third monstrous growl roared through Johnathon's mind._  
><em>

_FOOL! YOU NO NOTHING OF ME. FOR I AM SITHIS, FATHER OF DAEDRA AND BROTHER OF ANU. MY BROTHERHOOD BREATHES MY BLOOD AND YOU SHALL NEVER TASTE IT!  
><em>

The shock sent the entity immediately from Johnathon's head, reassuring itself back into Delun_  
><em>

"Back again? So I'm assuming it hates visitors?" Delun said sarcastically

* * *

><p><strong>Johnathon, Khai, and Kya<strong>

"Where you going John?" I asked.

His face turned white, his eyes an unbelievable color of curiosity. He swallowed hard before answering. "Did you see feel that?"

"What? Frostbite? We all do John" I replied.

John walked away for a moment feeling a sense of great desire. I was a moment where he couldn't predict what would happen or if it was good or bad fortune. He passed through entrance of the alley way and stopped. His breathing became slow and he could hear the sound of his beating heart pound on his chest, it was all he heard.

At the end of the ally way was the body of Monna, collapsed in the snow. In front of her was a man long thought to be dead. He was bald, wearing a black suit, and a red tie. He had been crouched down examining the body but when he got up, he stood at 6ft 6in right in front of Johnathon.

"It's a shame we couldn't keep her alive. She committed suicide, froze her own blood to avoid capture, a pity." The man turned around and looked Johnathon directly in his eyes. "Hello son" He said.

"Dad..? But your dead?"


	32. URBAN

**Compound Safe house (The Morning After The Gala)****  
><strong>

My body felt broken, torn in fact but I shouldn't be to picky about my comfort, after all, I should be dead. I didn't regain consciousness until noon the next day, fighting the war in my dreams. Call it a round two if you will, but this time, I lost the fight, I lost Kya, I lost my friends.

To be fairly honest the next morning felt amazing, and it wasn't the good nights rest, I surely deserved. No, the blue glow of a water bender emitted calmly from Kya's hands. I had never been at such physical peace before and Kya hadn't even noticed my consciousness. She look stressed and tired, half asleep, and completely zoned out.

It was kind of humorous actually. I tried to form a smile or at least a half grin but even my face felt like it was pulsing and swollen. A second heart beat in my noes, the pain was like that of a charlie horse in my leg. My vision was perfectly fine surprisingly. Nothing more then a first mornings blur. Kya sat beside the bed, healing me while being half conscious. She had been leaning over me, her head rested on my bare chest, and her silky black hair sprawled out across my body.

This had been the first time I had noticed a noise coming from her hands as she healed. A sort of "whirring" sound, that neither changed it volume nor pitch. I had also noticed that my shirt had been removed, my suit was gone and replaced with khaki shorts and socks.

_She took off my clothes and I wasn't even conscious? _I thought to myself.

I barely moved my hand an inch before my tendons began to strain. I've taken a lot of shots before this from Bo, but this time I took more then I could handle. I reached out again, attempting to move Kya beautiful black hair out of her eyes. Underestimation was a problem with myself and with what I could physically do. For example; I had attempted to remove strands of hair out of Kya's eyes but the tendons had begged to hard for me to surrender. I ended up dropping my arm and smacking Kya on the head.

"Sorry sweetie, my bad" I moaned, trying to force the untranslatable words out of my mouth. Kya yawned and fluttered her eyes multiple times, unaware of what happened. The night she spent on my chest hadn't really been her choice of comfort.

Her eyes finally opened, and her face went bright red. She moved in, resting her hand on my cheeks and finally brushing her lips against mine. They were soft and welcoming. Her lipstick had faded from last night and it didn't seem like she had changed from the party. A tear brushed up and started to roll down my cheek. She paused from our moment and rested her forehead against mine. Our faces entwined had never felt so comforting.

"Don't do that ever again okay?" Kya said, innocently.

"What's that? Nearly freezing to death or taking you on a date to a formal party where half of the guests there want to kill me" I replied sarcastically. It had taken me a while to put the words together but I think she understood.

Kya leaned in again, gently brushing her lips against mine. Feeling the warm presence of her cheek against mine made my whole body shutter. Not out of agitation but out of exhilaration. Her kiss was the devotion that motivated me to help relinquish this city of the tyrannical hold by Amon and my family.

"Leaving me" She said, out of the gentleness of her breath.

I had wondered what she had meant by this. I remember being with her just before passing out due to my wounds. I had asked Kya what had happened and she briefly clarified what had happened after my "sudden blackout". She told me about Johnathon, who had come to our rescue, covered in blood. She said she never felt any more terrified by the look in his eye in her life. Although she hadn't really spoken to Johnathon about his recent events and encounters with the Capitalist Tyrant, Robertson, she had still considered him a friend and has nothing but the utmost respect for him. He had saved her life.

She continued to tell me that they were separated, special forces had taken her back to the compound safe house, while Johnathon and some of his men took me back at a later time. Kya had insisted on staying with me, but she said Johnathon's logic about the enemy knowing that they'd be together and would surely kill them both or at least get a good chance at it, was a far superior argument. After some heavy hesitation, she conceded with John.

Minutes went by and Kya looked more fatigued then ever.

"Hey, Kya. I loved that you stayed with me and protected me, but you need to worry about your condition as well"

Kya shot me a disappointing look, she didn't want to leave and it sounded like I wanted her to. As expected, I immediately felt guilty but it was true. She needed to worry about her physical condition just as much as I did.

"I love you"

Her last words to me before she left. I would have offered for her to sleep here and regain some strength but I hadn't noticed the entire left side of the bed was covered in medical instruments, gauze, and bandages. Not to mention the countless empty syringes that toppled over one another. Taken into consideration that it had been Preditorian Doctors that came to my attention, I knew that I would be feeling better soon. Probably more sleep to pass the time would be the best assumption. At least before I could walk again.

Kya was nearly out the door when a reoccurring thought had entered my head.

"Hey Kya. Did you undress me?"

She didn't say anything. She laughed and shook her head in disbelief, disgusted but still laughing at the consideration that I thought she took off my clothes. The fact that she hadn't given me a straight answer, annoyed me and put me on edge. I thought about it a little longer before shouting out another question.

"It wasn't Ruan was it?"

Come to think, hadn't seen the bastard in quite some time.

* * *

><p><strong>Later that afternoon<strong>

It dawned on me that since Republic City had been going through its civil war, that the vast amount of medical supplies going to each side could mean all the difference. Now it's pretty obvious that one side would conquer the other if its medical tech was far superior but with stuff John's team had come up with, it's a whole other war.

The physical condition that battle had put me through left me in pieces. Would've left me in a coma or at least in a vegetative state with nothing better to do then to sit and drool on myself.

There goes my chances of stopping my family.

Not only was I ambulatory again but I had also gained some lost color in my face. I wasn't ready to go out and fight another war, unless I planned to die. I'd decided to take it slow, get back on my feet and probably peruse the city, Yang Chen district of course.

The only shirt available for me was a green t-shirt with the words URBAN on the front and in similar font on the right sleeve. It had been clean and pressed, until I put it on. I had no idea where it came from and I clearly don't remember buying it. It was a forest green color with a silver star over lapping the top right part of a green star that rested underneath it, both of which, had been in between two brown parallel bars. Which had laid just above heart.

I thought nothing of it. Dismissing the origin of the shirt, I had simply put it on, thankful to have it.

"Hey there sunshine, how was your date?"

"Damn, you're the last person I'd expect see tonight" I said.

Ruan had walked in unnoticed, wearing a tan t-shirt, dark jeans, and black shoes. I was surprised he hadn't been in anything that was of send bender origin, but then again Ruan wasn't the most traditional of the tribe. Those who were natives of the sand usually taken their appearance and bloodline seriously, always making sure to dress right and honor their family. That was before the stereotype that all sand benders were nothing but thieves and drunks of course. Each bender had their stereotypical weight, always eager to show others they could lift it off, and make a difference.

But that's how wars start.

We got reacquainted and talked about last night. Apparently he had gone to some local club called "MoonRise Tide" and hung out with some of the locals around the district, I've heard some talk about it but never actually been. Never had time.

I told Ruan, in full detail about the Gala event and the "party" that proceeded afterwards. The guy just sat there like a mindless zombie, waiting to here what came. His eyes were fixed, only blinking twice throughout my tale, I wasn't surprised he hadn't stopped.

"Your kidding, you took on Equalists, The Pride, and the MB's?" He asked.

"The Equalists were killed off my Monna of The Pride, who had committed suicide minutes after being shot by Johnathon."

Ruan fell back on the bed, his hands rested behind his head as he tried and put together everything I just said.

"That's pretty bad ass man."

"Yeah, well.."

He sat back up, concerned, and said 'Well what?"

My mind wandered off into a state of infinite what-ifs. What if I were to loose everything I've earned so far. Which to me, was surprisingly a lot. I don't understand how he could be so calm after being put through such terror in his life. Maybe it was because he wasn't in my position, but then again I'd rather not have him pity me. I didn't want to kill people, that wasn't my plan for my future. However, my father, my brother are pulling my strings in the wrong direction. They're driving my bloodlust.

"Forget it, I need a drink is all"

I never saw Ruan's eyes lit up before as I did today, he bounced himself off the bed and walked over to the door. He was all giddy, I could tell by the spring in his step and the massive grin on his face.

"Now that's what I'm talking about man!"

"Whats that?"

"Just get your jacket and meet me in the compound, trust me you need this bro!" Ruan exlaimed as he walked out the door.

I laughed, shaking my head at Ruan and tried to run my fingers through my brown hair, only to meet a thick layer of grease. _Very attractive, _I thought to myself. I was glad to see that I had some level of sarcasm in me, even though nobody was around to hear me.

I didn't want to keep Ruan waiting so I washed my hair out in the sink. The warm water rushing through my scalp felt nice, almost like a massage. The next few moments went by pretty passively as I got ready. Moments where I'd stop to think of Kya, and others where I would remember my life before the chaos. The intolerable odor of your typical body odor irradiated from myself like a smokestack, realizing that I hadn't bathed in quite some time, I decided it was best to hold off on it for tonight, as I didn't want to keep Ruan waiting.

It was comical how much I covered myself with deodorant. Almost like another shirt under what I woke up in. It didn't matter, the fumes of rotting fish were gone and now I could breathe _without_ having to choke because of my own bad hygiene The glimmer off my katana had caught my eye. I had left it here for the Gala, and now I almost feel like I missed it. Upon approach a yellow note business card for Yang's yellow chicken had been tied to the handle. On the other side it read "Intimidation is the worst way to make friends - Ruan" and below that in parenthesis, he wrote "Don't bring the sword!"

"I hadn't planned to" I said aloud.

Although the feel of the handle gave me a sort of jolt of excitement. It felt right to hold it, I felt a new urge to have it in my hands. I held it outward and positioned it as an extension of my arm. The light gleamed down the blade until it passed onto my hands.

With the training I had with this weapon, I felt like a whole different person. I didn't like that person.

I wasn't planning on bringing it.

I rejoined Ruan in the compound lot. He had been twirling a set of keys clumsily around his finger until dropping it onto the dirt. Hoping I that didn't see, he continued to do it again.

"Hey bro, ya ready?" He said, pushing the clumsiness aside.

"What are those for?" I asked, nodding to the keys.

Ruan looked at me with a 'your-going-to-hate-me-for-this' grin and jerked his head to the side. Then urged me to follow. Ruan had changed clothes, he wore a cyan collar button-down with khaki pants. He looked as if he was going on vacation, he needed flowers and a camera and he would already be half way.

We walked over to a garage, at this point Ruan was literally hopping he was so excited. The garages sheet metal door had already been unlock and was slightly opened for some to do the rest.

"Alright, so what's up?" I asked, concerned with Ruan's odd behavior.

Ruan's next motion was unsuspected, lifting the sheet metal door, all darkness had been beamed away by the rays of sun. In the center laid what seemed to be a brand new black satomobile. Chrome tires, red interior, and just one thick layer of shine. It's roof was collapsible and that's how we rode in it. Ruan screamed like a mad man, screaming and hollering as the wind smashed into his face and passing through our hair.

"Holy shit Ruan, where did you find this thing?" I shouted, trying to raise my voice over the passing traffic.

"These compound garages were filled with tons of shit. Everything that was off limits to us except for Johnathon and his Predi-whaty-ians, was marked, except this garage!"

"Preditorians" I corrected him.

"Right, Right"

We drove down the roads and into the main city of the Yang Chen district. At some points we'd have to slow down as we merged into traffic or to avoid being cited by the police. Other times we'd come to a screeching halt, leaving nothing but the black stains of rubber from our tires and the smell of it. It was interesting flying though the city, watching hundreds of people pass in a matter of seconds as they went about their lives on the streets. It would had been more fun if they hadn't been looking at me most of the time but it was Ruan who wouldn't stop cursing at the vehicle in front of us, going under the speed limit.

"Alright man, we're almost there!" He shouted.

And indeed we were. The "MoonRise Tide" had been on the shoreline, giving a nice view of the beach and if we got there earlier, we could have seen a beautiful sunset. However, we weren't really into that as much as the drinking part. Every window was blacked out. The slightly tinted windows, kept all light from shining in and you could only make out silhouettes.

As we parked I could see that it was a very popular spot to hand out. The wealthy would never be caught dead in such a place, it was a more of a lower class hang out. However, those who hung out in their satomobiles were completely under dress, even though Ruan told me it was a pretty low-class place. With their bending insignia's tattooed on their arms and painted on their rides.

"These are pretty interesting looking people" I said. Ruan finally parked the car after circling around twice and took a look around. People dressed in all types of clothes; some dressed in traditional bending clothes, while others dressed in rags and thug type clothing. Many men and women had tattoo's up and down their arms. Some of the men wore shaggy t-shirts and baggy pants, while others dressed pretty classy. Blazers and collar shirts of all kinds rested on the torso's of men and women.

"Yeah, some used to work for gangs, such as the three Triad gangs" Ruan said as if it was nothing to worry about.

"Used to?" I asked.

"Or still are apart, all I know is that people come here for a good time"

_Great, this should be cool,_ I thought.

It wasn't as bad as we thought. A lot of the men their had long black beard and acted like as if they spent their whole income on this place. The women there hadn't even acknowledged my existence, which I didn't mind.

We'd entered the Tide and was instantly met with an aurora of blue and purple lights. Simple flames, behind colored glass had illuminated such wonderful and peaceful colors, it had mimicked the northern lights perfectly. The rest of the place felt ominous, as the lights lid up the ceiling and booths, other area's had been almost pitch black. This place insured such privacy, I had only seen silhouettes of the bodies of people enjoying themselves, while their faces were only dimmed with such distorted color, caused by the lighting.

"Hey! Over here!" Ruan cried out.

The sudden outburst had made me jump a bit. In a place so dark and mysterious, I could feel as if I were being watched. As if everyone could see through the darkness and stare straight at me. I followed Ruan into a booth, upon further inspection I could see two others sitting there. It was such a weird illusion, sitting at the table and being surrounded by darkness. Only when I had entered the booth, could I make out the faces of the couple.

"Ruan ma' man! What's going on buddy?" A man said.

"Nothing much bro, hey, I'd like you to meet my friend Khai"

So apparently the story goes that Ruan got into a bit of trouble with the gambling halls that are located down in the basements of the Tide and this man had come down and saved him from being beaten to a pulp, and have been coming here ever since to hang out.

Ruan had introduced the couple. The man at the other side of the table was named Hotak. He was 23 and had black hair that spiked downwards from underneath his blue ball cap, a black shirt with a single red star on it, and wore simple blue jeans. The women at the other side was his fiancee, Tanai. She was 21 and was quite beautiful. She had long brown hair, and wore a simple red shirt and blue skinny jeans. She also had a small purple piercing that went right on the bottom lip. She had hazel colored eyes, that seemed to pour out into anyone who looked at her.

"So your nearly beaten up by some ex gang thugs after stupidly loosing money, you probably never had or at least borrowed from Johnathon and now you come back to hang out?" I said, recapping the story in a smart ass like way.

"Not true, they weren't ex. The three that threatened me were _still_ in gangs" Ruan said, correcting me.

"Well, we still have to look after him like a child; changing his diaper, making sure his liquor doesn't dribble down his chin, and wiping his noes" Tanai said.

"And occasionally we burp him" Hotak added.

We all laughed and eventually a man came by, shrouded in complete darkness and gave us some drinks that Hotak had already ordered. Ruan shot me a glace and jerked his head upward. "Go ahead, give it a shot" Ruan said, sliding me the ale in a glass, that seemed to be so dirty that even mold would refuse to grow on it.

So I felt the brown sludge pass down my throat, burning hotter as it got further down my throat. I gagged and choked on the slime, chunks had been stuck in between my teeth, and my breath had instantly gone sour. I put down the archaic drinking glass, and gagged on what was said to be ale.

"Ah, so do we have another baby? One that can't handle his alcohol?" Tanai said tauntingly.

The three of them laughed as I tried to get a grip on what had just entered my mouth.

"The hell was that?" I asked, trying to choke out a sentence. Even my words felt disgusting, I said "That was fucking wrong man, I'd rather have cactus juice then this shit"

The others roared out with more laughter, not only was it obvious that it was my first time drinking the shit, I had been the one to react the loudest out of all three of them.

"It's called "Rat's Brew" but don't let the name fool ya, it's actually got quite a kick to it" Hotak said, chugging down a quarter of his drink.

"Yea, a kick to the gut" I replied. Ruan's head was in his arms, trying to rid the tears of laughter that swelled up in his eyes.

The night went on with tales about the tales of bars fights in the past and how the Tide became one of the most alchemistic places in the Yang Chen district. It had apparently been a old illegal gambling hall when Republic City was first built but due to the high crime rate in the city, officials target such places and burned them down. However, this one began to rise again, and basically became the same thing but in a time of civil war, nobody really cares.

Then things began to get tense. Hotak seemed to stare at me as if for the first time. He sized me up, shifted his glance of to Tanai. She had been listening to Ruan's story of Kyoshi High, when she caught Hotak's signal. She looked over at me and then suddenly things got awkward.

I had been horrified that they had just realized my past as a family of high Equalist politicians, but that wasn't the case. Ruan shifted slightly in his seat and starred at me as well. Unlike Hotak and Tanai, he had no idea what was going on.

"You militia kid?" Hotak asked.

My heart started to ease up, hopefully I had gotten the wrong signal from them.

"Excuse me?" I asked, looking just as confused as Ruan was. Hotak smiled and glanced at Tanai who had been starring at my chest, or rather my shirt.

"That symbol, do you represent them?" She asked nodding to the two stars right above my heart.

The shirt, that's what they were talking about. My green shirt that came out of nowhere that read URBAN on it in bold letters.

"I-uh"

"Listen buddy, we're not upset. We're asking do you know what your at stake here by wearing that symbol so brightly on your chest?" Hotak said.

They clearly had known other Khai's in the lifetime, or rather Kai if they were from the city. If they knew who I was and what bloodline I was from, then they wouldn't be asking that question.

"No, I just found it and-" I continued but the sound of the ale being downed by Hotak had cut me off. It was so loud and disturbing, made me want to gag.

"Look friend, relax" He said, lifting up his ball cap to show off the same two-stared symbol underneath his bill. Tanai did something similar; pushing her long brown hair away from her neck, the same symbol had been tattooed on the side of her neck.

"What is this symbol?" I asked, pushing the Rat's Brew far away from me as possible.

"It's a target, a symbol of freedom, and a death sentence" Tanai said, taking a sip of her brown sludge. "A new government reform militia, built on the purpose of ending both the White Lotus Party and eliminating such threats as the Equalists" She said. She rested her chin on her hand and repeatedly tapped away with her fingers, as if paranoid to be talking about such treachery.

She continued anyway, "Look our problem isn't that someone like you wears it, it's when you wear it out in public that makes us loose our credibility and secrecy, understand?"

"yeah" I replied.

I had no idea that these types of people were into politics. They'd seem so laid back that I wouldn't expect them to be in such a scuzzy place like this.

"Have you been acquainted with the Preditorians?" Hotak asked. A grin appeared over Ruan's face but he remained silent. Drinking away at his brown filth.

"Yeah, you could say that" I replied.

"Good. Seems like they're doing us a favor and bringing a sort of peace to this city. At least there's somewhat stability and control over the cities crime. Hear one of them massacred an entire Red Monsoon Triad house. That's pretty bad ass" Hotak finished.

I didn't know what he meant by that but I wouldn't think any less of them. Better to wipe out crime then let it spread and cause more chaos.

"What do you think about them, Tanai?" Ruan asked.

Tanai put down her grime covered glass. She cleared her throat of the residue and said "I think they're cool, getting the dirty work done for us. Trouble is; are they gonna stay and take over or they gonna cool things down and restore order to the right people" She took another deep disgusting sip and spoke again, "I heard their gonna strip the districts and make it all nice and organized"

I liked that idea. Smooth out the segregation of each bender and make it an equal community. Not like there's rules against one nation of benders, but I feel like these districts are cutting us apart.

Hotak dipped two fingers into his sludge and flicked whatever residue he had at me to obtain my attention, and said "Before you leave, I'd suggest you turn that shirt inside out. Makes you look less conspicuous. True were not as famous as The Pride or The Equalists but those two factions know about us and would do anything to kill us. There aren't many of us ya know, and if they eliminate what they can, our dream of an organized city will be ruined"

"You better watch your shit kid, because your life if about to become like this Rat's Brew, terrible and unfulfilling"

I only smiled at his words. He knew nothing of me.


	33. Remember, Remember

**Off the coast of Republic City (Same time as Khai gets ready for the club)**

In the sight of a high and proud moon, Admiral Geming rests off the side of his fishing sampan. The balls of his feet had just barely been touching the cool nighttime water of one of Republic City's main ports. The large, rigid wooden floor of the shipping vessel had made it almost unbearable to walk on, and even with his black military style boots on, the sun's warmth felt like it was coming from below.

Eventually, when the sun fell, Geming felt nothing but the cool nighttime air. A squawking from some of the local harbor seagulls arose over the distant sky, but because of the time, he saw nothing.

He wore The Pride's usual brown robes but underneath he was dressed ready to face an army; Metal plating overlapped one another around his torso for maximum protection, studded chain mail had been nearly imbedded on his metal plate legs, you could barely see the difference, and an improved stun gauntlet.

All underneath a mysterious brown robe that cloaked the man's appearance. He was a walking fortress, built to destroy any Equalist that stood in his way. The same would go for those benders who hated them. If there was one thing Geming despised the most, it was a ignorant bender who sought to find 'peace' and 'tranquility' among the non benders.

Even the notion that there could be some treaty with the non benders was a sigh of imprecation in Geming's teachings. He found the theory to be hard to digest, long after he had dismissed the thought of it. Before he had his first encounter with Jun, Adm. Geming was a fire nation supremacist, urging the people of Republic City to brandish their power of fire.

However, as he dismissed the thought of 'peace', others dismissed the thought of 'war'. He grew weak and frail as his messages were thrown away like regular pieces of garbage, and he was left alone to rot his days out in the gutter and to be mocked by every passerby. He couldn't believe that when he met Jun he could be persuaded so persistently.

His path changed. He submerged his feet into the water, and with the metal the surrounded the inner lacing of his boots, they sunk instantly. Admiral Geming was accompanied by another. He had noticed this figured, shrouded in a brown aurora, out of the corner of his eye. He had immediately suspected that he was one of his.

"Monna is dead" Chen said passively. No emotion had past through his lips, nothing but the sticky, black essence of tobacco had curled above his noes.

Geming hadn't said a word. He had received word of her falling an hour after her death by Mao. Though he wasn't disappointed in her poor choice of actions. There was a time he could remember where she had doubt in her veins and the obscene thought of treason in her mind, though she had never actually displayed such an atrocity.

"Chen, let me ask you something" Geming said, replying with more question in his voice then anger.

Chen raised a brow. Usually a topic such as this would have infuriated such a man. The fact he showed know other emotion but to reply with a question had vaguely intrigued him. He let out a deep sigh of black smoke and removed his hood, sitting himself down on a nearby tuna crate. He passed his fingers through his wearied black hair, which hadn't seen the sight of a pillow in quite some time.

He took a few drags on his cigarette and blew a warm stream of smoke out his nostrils.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Do you still believe in our cause?" He asked.

Although his position didn't change, Chen sensed some level of irritation in Geming. His cigarette rest in between his index and middle finger, the only sound that had been made was the ash that fell from the burnt end.

"Of course"

"Don't lie"

Chen sought such a phrase from a man of high stature to be pitiful. It was almost embarrassing to hear the words escape from his thoughts, let alone his mouth. He sighed again as more ash fell from his burning cigarette.

"I have the utmost confidence in our part here in this war, sir" Chen relied taking another long drag.

"Fool. You are in no position to pity me" Geming said, rising off the edge of the sampan. The metal in his boots shook the boat, each time he took a step.

"I didn't say such a thing. I was only encouraging the name of The Pride" Chen replied.

The admiral sat down right next to him, on a pile of tune crates that had been tide down in the center of the sampan, since departure. Chen, out of 'celebration' of their cause, offered him a cigarette, which he had pulled out of his pocket. The long white sticks were old, dusty in fact, but they still burned brightly. However, Geming had taken it only to engulf the cig in a burn blue flame in the palm of his hand, leaving no remnants.

"I think you over did it a little bit" Chen said, stamping his finished one on the floor of the boat.

"You can think whatever of me Chen, but I expect cooperation and loyalty on what we do, on what we accomplish"

Chen pulled his hood back his head, until not but the tip of his noes had been barely seen. Chen spoke cautiously, "Sir, I am loyal"

"You speak very guardedly Chen. Monna sounded the same way to me before she died. I only ask you to increase your devotion because loosing another member is humiliating. What are we without fear? A laughing stock. Just be aware that I DO have a plan" Gemming said.

Chen laid back on some bundled up fishing net, and rested his head on the palms of his hands. He closed his eyes and said, "Like I said, nothing but confidence"

A loud and terrifying screech shot through the air like blasting jelly. Chen had shot up immediately do to it's horrific sound, and pulled along with him, two boulders from underneath the water. The ripples and waves had made the boat rock, nearly displacing the pridesman.

"Put them down Chen, it's not a spy"

Chen swallowed hard and as embarrassed as he was, he tried not to blush. A large black and red, hawk-like bird, had came down and landed itself around Gemming's metal arms. It's feathers were primarily black but had a shimmer of red to them, which almost mimicked the image of a blood splatter.

"Is that? A bat hawk?"

Gemming nodded. This endangered species was none for their murderous capabilities during the great war. Their blind, so echolocation is their only way of sensing direction. That and their sense of smell. It's talons were long enough to kill a man in a single strike if rightly place. It's been nicknamed the 'banshee bird' due to its fierce screech.

"Is this apart of your plan?" Chen said, lowering the large structures of stone back into the depts of the sea.

"Yes" Gemming replied, adding a quick sound of pleasure in his voice.

It's beak was of a darkened orange, almost a mud-brown looking color, but great for killing its prey. Along its leg was a small tube, containing a message of conformation. Gemming looked at it with delight, as the next phase was nearly done.

"What's going on?"

"Listen up Chen, I'd hate to repeat this. Along the ports of Republic City lies a war, a quiet war, consisting of two groups. Those who work, unload, and distribute boxes of who knows what, and merely live off minimum wage to support their family. A lower class of people called "Scraps" due to their long intention of working and feeding on whatever they can. Their superiors consists of higher class nobleman known as "Port Advisers". These people are all under command of the "Port Master" an Individual who oversees the whole operation"

"I don't understand what this had to do with us? What operation?" Chen replied. The bat hawk had taken off into the night, determined to return to its sender.

"The ports of Republic City have two major function: The safe docking of shipping vessels, and the unloading and distributing of many supplies brought into the nation for economic purposes. Over the past decade the Port Adviser, Ju Fen, had made it very hard for the Scraps to make a decent living. She lowered wages, increased working hours, made life brutal for them and on top of all that, she closed down several apartment complexes that was declared to be "On her property" so that she could save money. Hundreds were put on the streets"

"That's horrible, are they benders?" Chen asked.

"It's a mixed bunch. A fight, I'd rather not be apart of"

"Then why be apart of it? You are aiding them aren't you? Isn't what that message was about?" Chen asked intently.

Gemming took in a big breath before releasing a gust of exhaustion. _I should have taken that cigarette, _He thought. He continued.

"Listen carefully. After the decade, Ju was executed due to treasonous reasons, I'm not even going to attempt to explain to you, She was succeeded by, Kun Liang, a powerful earth bender. However, many Scraps were happy with this transaction, but Kun hadn't been any better then Ju. In fact, he gave more power and authority to the Port Advisers; which many scraps claim to be bullies. So here's where I come in"

_Thank the spirits.. _ Chen thought. He would had let his leader continue, when I thought occurred to him.

"But why hasn't the counsel heard about this?"

"This was the start of the Equalist era. They considered the port issue to be a.. meager issue compared to the situation that was unfolding" Gemming replied. Gemming nodded to the cigarette case that was sticking out of Chen's pocket. Chen grinned and slid him a stick. As Gemming lit his with his thumb, he laughed as Chen tried to start a flame with an inadequate lighter.

"Here, a blue flame makes it taste better" Gemming said, as he lit Chen's.

They both took long drags on their cigarettes, that illuminated a blue flame instead of red. It was true, the blue flame had made their nerves more relaxed, and their chi pools more focused, but still caused them the same amount of harm as a red flame would.

"The taste is better" Chen agreed. "So, how do you come into play again?"

* * *

><p><strong>The Blasting Jelly Plot<strong>

"Hey hurry up and unload that shit man!" One man said.

"Oh fuck off, you're not even doing any work!" The Second man replied.

"I'm keeping watch, without me you'd better as well slit your own throat!"

They all dressed the same. Grey vests, with black undershirts, and a matching grey cargo pants. They wore shoes that hadn't protected their feet at all, Kun had made them all turn in their duty boots for purposes that he said would "save money for future raises". It was all a bunch of lies, and the four of them new it. What they were given didn't even look like shoes at all. Mere rages around the feet and covered in duct tape.

"Hurry up!" The second man said, trying to keep a low profile.

The first man had disappeared within the front flaps of the cargo vehicle. later on, he would reappear but rolling a brown barrel, to heavy for even one man to carry. He would then lower it into the hands of a third and fourth man, who would carry the barrels and neatly set them side by side.

"You guys need to shut it. What does that make now, 9? 10 barrels?" The third man asked.

The onlooking second man observed the scenery of the wretched ports of Republic City. Men in grey would continue to work their ass off for little to nothing wadges. He was disgusted. Some of the port advisers had been squabbling with the other scraps, but they wouldn't have the confidence to stand up for themselves, as they faces possible eviction or being fired.

The second man spat a wad of tobacco onto the pavement, as his head moved side to side, looking for any possible threat.

"Hey, so what did we agree on the contents of the barrels?" The fourth man asked.

"Shit man, do we have to constantly do this with you? Should've fuckin' glued the plan onto your forehead" The second man replied.

The rest of them ignored him and the first man, who had been stationed in the cargo vehicle, signaled him over. The fourth man hopped up into the transportation unit and walked up to the first man. The first man had taken off the lid of an unsealed barrel to reveal a white, snow like powder on the top.

"Okay so the first four inches of this barrel contains sugar, just to get past inspection. The rest is blasting jelly, which hides underneath this divider which blocks any sight of the jelly"

The fourth man nodded in approval at the scheme, thinking that nobody will think of search the full contents of the crate.

"Hey, adviser! Get the hell out here, you two!" The second man called.

The four of them lined up as a man dressed fully in a metal bending uniform had approached them. None of them were nervous, they had gone throughout the whole day without being picked up as suspicious.

"What the hell are you four doing? Nobody needs to be unloading cargo this close to the Port Hall" The adviser instructed. His face began to swell into a red balloon.

"Sir, with all do respect, we'd rather be up here to avoid any injuries that man happen that could cause further delay with our job" The second man said.

The building right next to them had been the Port Hall, sort of the capital of Republic City's ports. Anything that had to due with shipping manifests, transport requests, cargo manifests, and who left and entered had to come through this building. It also held the Port Master, who feasted like a fat king while the rest of his servants had to slave to unbearable working conditions.

"I don't care, you know the rules, why the fuck would I give you the special treatment?" The advisers said angrily.

"Look, sir we.."

"Hey!" The adviser yelled, interrupting the first man. "I don't need your shit! You follow basic introductions that's put up, nothing to it!"

"Alright sir, we apologize" The first man said.

The adviser walked around the four men to see 10 barrels lined up neatly next to one another. The basement door to the Port Hall had been opened and a lot more could be seen on the inside.

"What's all this?"

"Sugar sir. We were instructed to take it into the Port Hall" The third man said.

"Instructed by whom?"

He choked on his own words. The third man had forgotten that they weren't instructed by anybody, the words just slipped out. Nobody had said anything else but he knew what they were thinking. He could feel their anger and that he of all people who let them down.

_Fuck, why did I get caught up in all this? Should I just confess?_

The silence of the third man was cut off by snapping of a metal wire. One of the cranes, that had been hoisting cargo off a ship had its wires snap. A loud pinging sound and the crane had begun to topple over sideways onto the large ship. Hundreds of loud screams and cries could be heard and the metal contraption had began to plummet onto the deck, releasing the heavy and distilled contents of which it had been carrying.

"Fuck! The Port Master's going to have my head after this! You four stay here!" He shouted, as he ran in the chaos.

The four watched in silence as their adviser was completely out of range. The second man looked to the third and outrageous yelled,

"Idiot! You could have ruined everything! Now hurry and get the rest of the cargo into the basement!"

They all continued to unload cautiously. The second man remained at watch as the rest were hard at work. The scare that the third man had put them through had sent them all in complete and utter paranoia. The second man was more cautious then ever, mentioning everybody who looked like they were getting to close to the. Truth was, the adviser was right, the four of them hadn't needed to be over there at all. The only time a scrap was seen at the Port Hall was for collecting payments or disciplinary action. They had been out of place, unloading wooden barrels into the Port Hall. However, this had been their only incident.

"There finished, what's next?" The fourth man said.

They had indeed been done. The dark, stained wooden barrels had been place neatly in the basement of the Port Hall, ready for the next step. The first and second man hopped into the driver and passenger seat and instructed the other two men to wait for another. As they drove off, the remaining third and fourth men had looked more suspicious as ever. Since their 'work' had hidden their true purpose, they now stood clearly in view of the others who worked on the dock and all it took was somebody to report them.

The third man took out a notepad that had been in his pocket and pretended to slowly check over and over the cargo which they had just distributed into the hall. They fourth man had changed to look out, and now watched as the squabbling on the deck, continued to get more attention then they were.

"You know, this actually might work" He uttered in a excited tone of voice. He couldn't help but grin at the chaos on deck, knowing that this would be the last of the suffering the scraps would have to endure.

They continued to wait, pretending to work, until met by another scrap. This man was not the first or second man, their mission had been complete. Now it was the fifth man turn.

"How's it going fella's? What's our move?" He asked.

The man had black hair, almost tangled and so greasy that the sun had reflected of it. He dressed as all scraps should and had a pungent smell of tobacco mixed with his daily body odor. He had been the only one who had real shoes, while the others had been torn and roughed up.

"You a gambling man Gao?" The third man asked in a hushed voice.

Gao stopped himself in his tracks, surprised at phrase he considered saying no, thinking that if he were to respond positively, he would be subjugated to more work. However, it was him who had sabotaged the crane for the distraction, so there was probably little work that needed to be done now.

"Yeah, I'm a betting man. You game?" Gao replied.

"No, not games Gao, we're talking about real life here. We need you to watch over the blasting jelly and when the time is right, throw a match onto a barrel and run like hell. The wood is dry enough for the fire to catch and spread" The third man said.

Gao pondered over their plan for a little while longer but then nodded in agreement.

"So, the barrels explode, Port Hall crumbles, and the death Kun sparks the rebellion. Or some sort of violent labor strike." Gao said, sounding confident in the plan.

"Correct" Replied the third man.

"We just need you to sit tight while, we go and make sure the Port Master is in the hall. Otherwise, this will be all for nothing. One of us will come get you when were done" The fourth man said.

"And what about night patrols?" Gao asked.

"Night patrols won't even acknowledge the basement of the hall. Their job is to guard the contents of the ship and the docks. The cargo that surrounds the ports is worth more then the Port Hall itself in solid gold!"

The three of them agreed and Gao was alone in the basement. It had more of a wine cellar decor to it than anything else. The long hallways had barrels piled up to the ceiling on each side. Continuing down the dark and dusty sub level of the building, it had hooked around into a giant U shape tunnel, leading right back to the entrance. Gao had to admit that this was risky, but the safety of him and his friends came first, and the way that they're being treated is unacceptable.

He hadn't been aware of all details; like where did the blasting jelly come from, who created the plan, and how long did he have to stay down here. All of this information hadn't been given to him. When he signed up for this, he didn't ask questions. He wanted fair treatment and when Ju was executed, he'd hoped for more out of Kun, but that never came. Peace was over, and now a time of force had arrived. He didn't care about the Equalist revolution, in fact he wasn't even a bender.

The sides didn't matter to him. He waited down into that basement for hours, waiting unknowingly for the right time to destroy the building. That time had come by the presence of the door starting to rattle. Eager as he was, he rushed the door to let the men inside.

* * *

><p><strong>Gemming's Sampan<br>**

"So what? Your going to blow up the Port Hall?" Chen suggested, throwing his finished cigarette into the ocean. He hadn't had a better one, then a blue lit cig.

"And waste all that valuable explosives? It's just another message that can be used by The Pride to ensure our dominance. No, I plan on taking all that jelly for myself, I just needed it to be in one convenient location" Gemming said.

Chen was at a loss. He through himself back onto the fishing net, still thinking of the plan. He lashed out one last puff of smoke into the nighttime sky before coming to a form of a conclusion.

"Wait, but how do you intend to take the..." Chen's eyes lit up, and he hoisted himself to his feet and spun around to Gemming, who had been starring into the lit up Republic City, with a menacing grin on his face, "You ratted them out?" Chen finally said.

"You see Chen, when Gao answers that door, the final call, he won't be greeted by his conspirators. He'll be met with the advisers and some of the Port Master's privateers. He'll be found out, he will be tortured, beaten, and eventually executed. The barrels would need to be dealt with immediately, as Republic City has a strict anti Blasting Jelly law, as it it found to be "inhumane". Even the Port Master would remove such a felony from his midst, he'll load the explosives up into two transportation vehicle, and sent out to be dumped into the ocean, before anyone can be notified of the incident" Gemming finished.

"You plan on stealing the explosives, once they're on the road.. the port guards have already done all the work for you by shipping them off!" Chen exclaimed. His mind was in a frenzy, such an amount of explosives could render an entire block in utter and complete devastation. His mouth watered at the idea.

"What about the rest of the conspirators?" Asked Chen. Gemming shifted uncomfortably at the idea but had no major concern for them.

"It doesn't matter. Whether Gao decides to call them out to his executioners is his choice, but after tonight, I wouldn't be surprised if they took off. It's all a matter of high jacking the transports. And this message had confirmed that they begun to mobilize"

"Who sent that message?" Chen asked.

"My sixth man" Gemming said, with a widened smirk on his face.

Chen look surprised. Gemming had clearly focused a lot on the details to this operation. If he were to guess, it was Gemming's sixth man who had gathered the five conspirators on behalf of the Admirals orders. He swallowed hard to think what he might have in store.

"Sadly he cannot do it alone, that's why I want you to meet up with him" Gemming said.

Chen agreed to the plan, he liked what he had heard. His confidence had been restored in his leader, and now, with this sixth man, he would help show this city what the clan was really all about.

Gemming closed one eye and held his palm out, carefully distancing himself so that his hand gave the illusion that he was holding Republic City in the palm of his hand. Soon after, that city would be engulfed in a blue flame. Gemming imagined the screams of terror by the residents as they fell on their knees, beggin him for mercy.

"A city who is fond of playing with fire, will surely perish in flames"


	34. Brethren

_Authors Note: Alright John here another chapter._

* * *

><p><strong>Near the outskirts of Republic Cities North Gate<strong>

Chen loathed a lot of things but a change of plans was easily in his top tens. He found it to be both distasteful and a sign of disrespect. Seeing as how people are always changing their minds, he feels whenever he is involved in a switch-up, people doubt him or his skills. Aside from the whole reassigning of duties that he was forced to go through with, he didn't mind taking a little break from all the craziness. Geming had originally planned for Chen to meet up with his informant to intercept the blasting jelly which Geming had just officially named a "Mobile First Priority", and seeing as which it was in the Republic hands, he needed to get the job done immediately.

Kenten spent most of his days keeping himself out of the public eye and into the heart of darkness. For a man with an immense passion for blood lust and brutality, his new life couldn't be more sustainable. The nighttime gave Kenten the hours he needed to spend his time gambling and smoking. He never really wore his robe. The idea of The Pride's mobilization put a lot of people on edge and he could guess that security wouldn't go out unchanged.

Ever since they disbanded their meetings in the sanctuary, Kenten had been ordered to safeguard the main entrance of Republic City. Hundreds of people flocked the gates for entry each day just for entry. After about of week of camping in the hills that overlooked the northern gate, he recognized the level of bullshit his assignment was in simply watching people walk through a door. However, since the rumors of a civil war breaking out between bender and non bender, tourists had been scarce. For this reason, Kenten decided to change things up a bit.

He'd continue again and again to exit the consciousness of the real world and joining a society where winning a couple hundred yuans meant more than the lives of those would lived in the Republic. Times like those, where he was shrouded with illusion, had even put The Pride's missions on halt so he could play a couple rounds of poker and an illegal yet popular game known as "Red Cards".

This was a very common game in the Republic City Undergrounds, or hidden gambling rings. People would literally bet anything from cash to fingers, just to get a cheap thrill of winning. Kenten was no street rat. He was a sand bender who could toss the rules around just like his chi in his bending. Of course, this had to be done during the nighttime. The morning held no use for Kenten but to eat and use the whole world had his giant toilet.

Keeping his location covert was one of the more difficult things to accomplish when your watching over one of the most well guarded place in the city. He spent days roaming around the city in civilian clothes trying to get a break on where he could stay that was around that area. Sadly for him, the buildings stood around the northern gate gave him no shelter. It's not like they could, sleeping in an office building or post office wasn't really the most suitable places to live.

There were no hotels, apartments, houses, or even parks to sleep at for that matter. It was a safety thing Avatar Aang and Zuko had decided on when they built the place, seeing it as a "front line causalities" if any war were to break out. For that matter, they built the districts, but even now they didn't seem like they would last. At least to Kenten they didn't.

After searching around, in and outside the city, Kenten was finally able to learn about an abandon coal mine, about a quarter of a mile past the northern gates. Seeing as it had no coal in it to begin with, it was shut down but still technically property of the government. Lucky for Kenten nobody ever patrolled in that region. He joked around calling it "living arrangements" made for him by "our well founded government". Furniture and food was bought from the money he earned as a heavy gambler. Although he was broke at first, he made his living by robbing street merchants and cargo stalls that were on their way to the city. Tactically, he ambushed them at least five miles before they could reach the entrance so that he would have enough time to take was he needed and split.

* * *

><p><strong>Kenten<strong>

As darkness swallowed up Republic City and it's citizens began to turn in for the night. Night patrol rose from their nocturnal habitats to roam the quiescent dark streets of the city. A thick line of tree stood like the front lines of an army, leaves and branches swaying in the wind, like soldiers preparing to charge. As the blackness engulfed the sky, the oil began to burn brighter. The aroma had nested under Kenten's noes, already making camp. The fumes gave him a false sense of security, it put him to much at ease that he could quickly loose his guard if someone were to wander in. Seeing as that was unlikely, he did so anyway, not at all caring about the consequences.

Kenten wasn't worried about the light. He had set up camp pretty far back in the cave for anyone to see any kind of illumination. His army of nature outside, had been his greatest advantage. The room consisted of oak furniture, a couple chairs resting next to a huge oak table. He was lucky to even find one in this condition. The table was like one used in meetings during times of war or peace talks. Something that would go in a war room, but not as fancy. He had barrels filled to the brim with water. Dark wood that almost seemed to have been built from the driest wood in the forest. The looked weak and fragile but they seemed to be doing all right.

Kenten could never seem to have found a bed. He found it humorous that he could find a war table but not a simple bed. Sure he found blankets, but that wasn't enough to be defined as comfort. He had managed to buy a sleeping bag from the town markets, one of the only times he was seen during the day. A dark green sleeping bag, that was tattered and beat up. The bottom of it was layered in dust that never seemed to want to come off. He debated if it was ever used by a homeless man due to its condition, and was certain it was at some point, but he wasn't picky.

Kenten wore a dark blue hoodie with black jeans. White sneakers and cigar-case shaped jars of sand that had been wrapped his ankles and wrists that he used for a quick weapon. Only about four inches tall, they were covered perfect by his pants. He leaned up against his giant oak table, shuffling the amounts of yuans in his hands. One by one, he licked his thumb and quickly slid away another bill, already counted up to 4,300 yuans. He needed 500 if he wanted to join, but his arrogance told him to take 5,000.

He licked his thumb again and slid away another hundred yuans. The taste of paper could easily been identified to him. He focused on none other then the game itself, head nodding at every number he counted, he had difficulty on what he wanted to play. He considered poker but that wasn't much of a thrill anymore. He wanted to play red cards, but had no desire of paying with organs, nor did he have any use of taking any. He licked his thumb again but paused on a mangled 20 yuan bill.

He looked upwards towards the entrance of the cave. A slight breeze had rolled on passed but it was no concern of the pridesman. He slowly began to slide another yuan to the back finally putting him at 5,000. He pocketed the five grand and threw the rest on the table.

A loud and violent shriek uttered through the cave as if someone had just been violently murdered from the other side. It nearly gave Kenten a heart attack and made him lose his grip on his cash.

"FUCK!" He shouted, whipping out vines of sand from his arms. His heart skipped a beat as his eyes scanned the cave for any sign of that intolerable scream. Darting passed him like a arrow, a small black shadow had flown right by Kenten's head, nearly hitting him. The gust of wind it cause had blown some of the yuans of the table.

"C'mon not the cash!" Kenten shouted, throwing his long vines of sand at the shadow. He continuously missed, sending them into the support beams that lined the inner walls of the cave.

It screeched again and again, the sound of bloody murder zipping through the air as he continued to miss. Calmly he stopped, reabsorbing the sand back into the thin jars, and allowing the screaming black shadow to reveal itself in plain light.

Kenten was dumbfounded at first, thinking that a species such as the bat hawk still existed. Then again he clearly remember screaming like that coming from the banshee bird that Gemming had in his quarters from the sanctuary. The bird landed on scattered bills. Its shimmering red feathers had come to a halt, the violent bird finally coming to a passive phase for only a moment, giving Kenten just the right amount of time to remove the messenger tube from its leg.

As his lifeless-gamblers eyes scanned the short note, he had the intense urge to violently tear up the letter. Admiral Gemming had called him to meet up with his informant at Orange Rock Pass for a top priority assignment. He dug his nails into the side of the note, holding back the temptation to just strangle the bird that had brought him such a message.

_He's calling me? He waits this long to contact me? The nerve of that bastard! _Kenten thought.

His head was in a flutter. It was as if he spent so long gambling that he forgot his training and commitment with The Pride. He cursed to himself multiple times, and then to the bird which had no effect on it. The Banshee Bird pecked at its feathers with its impressive beak and ruffled its feathers, the shimmer of crimson mimicked the fall of blood.

Kenten replied casually, by regulations he had to. He was not impressed by the fact they requested him. Sure he was on the team but for right now he felt betrayed. He felt as if the whole clan had forgotten him. He replied with a passive letter that might as well have said "Fuck you" but was incapable to reply with such frustration. This caused him to rewrite the letter several times before tying the tube back on the birds leg.

Many yuans flew off the table as the bird pushed itself off the table and into the air. Of course the bird wanted needed a tip for its travels and hard work and had taken the yuans that had been impaled with its large talons when it had landed.

_Shit, fucking bird_ Kenten thought as he drove his fist onto a support beam. All in all, he wasn't to pleased with the news but this would allow him to blow off some steam so he could get back to his games.

* * *

><p><strong>Orange Rock Pass<strong>

Orange rock pass wasn't in Republic City. Due to city regulations and laws, the exportation of blasting jelly needed to be pushed out through a non civilian route and was usually kept off traveling guides and maps. It was a shame because it was quite a beautiful place. Large mountainsides that when hit perfectly with the sun, gave off an orange tint, giving it its name.

Soldiers and guards of the republic were often drawn towards the cliffs because of its beauty. However, it was a driving hazard and all military like personnel were ordered to wear protective, silver-rimmed, glasses that might as well been normal utility goggles. Even still, the hills were in position of rick slides that could easily push a single military transport off the cliff and into the ocean that surrounds the city.

Kenten had thought nothing of it. He thought that if anyone who appreciated rock over the necessities of life, like cash, were fools. He had changed into his robe before he had left. Kenten stood from the top of the mountains, looking down at the scenery that he claimed to be in his path of destruction. He could feel the wind pass through his hood and around his ears, quickly dying off from that point.

Kenten had spotted a large cliff side jetting out from the large mountains. Below he could see the roads, connected by two tunnels that allowed military personnel through the mountains. It was glazed with bright orange, the sun had a direct impact on the cliff, making it a sweet blind spot for anyone who dared to looked at its major glare.

However, its looks hadn't been the reason why it caught his eye. A lone man with a couple of crates sat upon the cliff with the only intention of looking down every so often.

Kenten began to stir his chi, he hadn't known why he was there, and if it was a military outpost-set up by the republic-he need to warn his informant of the radical security precautions that had been taken. The man hadn't worn anything related to the Republic or the Equalists. He looked liked a civilian. He wore a dark tan t-shirt, a light brown pilots jacket, dark blue jeans, and regular black civilian shoes.

A short tense moment passed where their eyes locked to one another. Kenten's chi had increased, his veins were in a flurry with such power, but then stopped. Kenten instantly recognized the black hair and the rimless glasses. It was Sento of The Pride.

Kenten bit his lower lip and cursed to himself as he began to walk alongside the mountain top to aline himself with the cliff Sento had been on. He looked over the side of the cliff and was instantly met with a gust of wind that he blinded him temporarily. His arm bolted upwards to his face to shield his eyes for more incoming debris.

After regaining sight, he looked down the angled mountain to see Sento standing carefully as if he were about to fall of the mountain. His black hair blowing from the breeze, as if the air itself was tugging away at it. Of all The Prides members, he was the most passive and patient. Kenten looked over his should and spat the remaining dust particles that had gotten into his mouth from the wind;onto the ground.

Kenten slowly began his decent, skidding down the side of the mountain in his boots. A trail of dust, dirt, and rock flew up behind him and into the air before finally ending with a skidding halt at the cliff.

"Its been awhile, good to see you brother" Sento said with an innocent smile.

Kenten ignored his greeting and continued to dust off the dirt that covered his robe.

"The nerve of that pompous idiot!" Kenten said as he continued to get himself settled. "Weeks after we leave and Gemming just asks for a favor? As if I'm nothing more than a pawn, that bastard just forgets me!"

Sento sat down on a wooden chest, there were two other barrels up there as well. A solid wall had protected them from anyone on the road to see them on the cliff, but it was short enough for them to look around and to see who was coming.

"Don't get sore about it, this is my first assignment to" Sento said. He peered around the wall, which he sat up against, and looked down to see an empty road. A disappointed look crossed his face as he turned back to Kenten. "Don't take this the wrong way or anything but why are you here brother?" Sento asked.

"First off, cut out that formal crap. _"Brother", _nope_,_ I don't want to here it. Second, what do you mean why am I here?" He asked.

Sento adjusted his glasses. The glare from the sun had made each glass reflect a bright and unbearable light, as if Kenten was looking into the eyes of a powerful spirit.

"Well, the note I received said that I would be accompanied by Chen, not you"

"Yea I saw that part in my letter" Kenten began. "Gemming assigned him to look for Delun, guys a fuckin nut if y'ask me" Kenten took the time to sit down across from Sento. The sun was still reflected of his glasses. "So what's the plan?"

"Plan? I'd thought we'd just wing it" Sento said giving off a sadistic smirk.

"Your joking?" Kenten said sternly.

"Your not laughing" Sento replied casually.

Kenten anger raged into his chi, the very essence of power he had, had been derived from pure hatred towards others. "What do you mean you have no plan? Don't tell me I came all this way for this shit!" Kenten roared. What infuriated him even more was the fact that the bright gleam of light that had reflected off of Sento's glasses had prevented him from seeing any type of emotion in his eyes. Kenten was pissed, he felt like Sento was mocking him in a way.

"Were you doing anything else that was just as important?" Sento asked.

"Nothing that concerns you"

"Your right, I don't gamble with your money"

Kenten shot him a surprised look. Sento didn't look back, his hands folded into one another, individually popping the knuckles in each finger. He then caught sight of Kenten's confused gaze and smiled innocently. Reaching into his pocket he handed him two, one hundred yuan bills, each one punctured from the claws of Gemmings bird.

"I don't remember you having this kind of cash stowed away at the sanctuary, so I'd imagine your life going pretty well huh?"

Kenten looked away as if ashamed at what his life had become. He had become a high risk gambler and he wasn't even worried to much about the risk. He was good. Unbeatable in fact, life seemed to give him all the edges.

Kenten tried to look harder at his recent past. He had been good, to good in fact it seems life had been favoring him to much recently. He could remember his first time playing red cards. Some guy, who's name he couldn't remember but still had the very game in his mind. He could remember the man's face, a poor and dirty old face that seemed like he was desperate for a few yuans.

Kenten could remember the tears that rolled down his sad face. He wore rags, or at least that's what they looked like. He could remember how he looked into the man's eyes and clearly see nothing, nothing but sadness in each pupil. As the dealer dealt out the cards, the man wouldn't even look up at Kenten. Kenten was a person who could read others through their eyes but even so, this man wasn't worth his time.

Every time the dealer slid a card to him had made him twitch a little. A nervous tick by the way Kenten saw it. Still, a man of such poverty shouldn't even be this low in society, Kenten saw it that the man be better off dead.

"You in?" Kenten remembers saying. The air around him was surrounded by a thick layer of smoke that ran off of the cigars of the spectators.

The man only nodded, however he hadn't put anything at stake. Kenten had put up about 20 yuan to start out while the man just sat there and whimpered. Kenten gave him a look of utter confusion and looked around for the man's wager as if he had missed him putting it up for stakes but he saw nothing.

As the man went to pick up his cards he hand had been wrapped up in bandages. Blood ran through the cloth, nearly seeping through the bandages. It used to be white but about half of it now was red. He was missing his pinky finger, the man held his cards awkwardly in such a way that he had never had to before. Kenten had one that game, his first time winning at red cards hadn't been as thrilling as he suspected. He got bored of the usual poker and wanted a new challenge, but this was pathetic to him.

The man had wagered up his own pinky finger for some dinner, and even at that very night, he would go out starving. Kenten thought nothing of it his prize. What would he do with a finger anyway? He just saw how deeply evil and pathetic this game was and as a result he went back to playing his high risk poker for some real yuan.

"Do you ever think of life then more than just a gamble Kenten?" Sento asked, breaking Kenten of his flashback.

"Don't be an idiot Sento, life's definition should be changed to "high staking". It's a pure gamble. You just need the right cards to play, otherwise, you'll lose your bet" He responded forcefully.

"Your talking about karma right?" Sento asked curiously.

"I don't need your superstition. Karma is just a word given to the less fortunate to make them feel better about people with power, people like us. Kind of like the saying "you win some you lose some" it's all bull, that is, unless you have power" Kenten replied vigorously.

"So, to put this in terms of gambling. If your at the top of your game and luck..sorry, "skill" is in your favor, you can't be beat?"

"I'm living proof man"

"So you can't be beaten?"

"Exactly!" Kenten raged out.

Sento smirked and looked over his shoulder, like he had been doing all this time, "right" he spoke softly. The roads were quiet and empty and he had ran out of conversation.

Kenten leaned his head back into his hands, resting against the rock wall he remembered Gemming's bird.

"So that damn bird came to ya right?" Kenten asked.

"Yup" he replied passively nodding his head. "Yea, took off right after I got your message, I saw it wanted a tip for its hard work. I figured that it got better benefits anyway and didn't need to get paid, so a scrapped together what I could. It ate most of it sadly" Sento said.

Kenten let out a soft chuckle and glanced down at his half eaten bills and said, "Yeah, I noticed", but his attention was soon fixed on the barrels and chest that Sento had brought with him. "What with the cargo? Surely you haven't been living up here all this time?" Kenten asked.

"No, no. The crates are filled with sand and the chest I'm sitting on is holding my lunch" Sento said with an honest smile.

A loud rumbling from below had startled the both of them. The first few security vehicles of the convoy had begun to appeared out of the tunnel. Kenten eyes lit up, and he rose to his feet with a powerful aggression aching in his stomach.

"Settle down" Sento said, his heart beating off rhythm, his nerves had gotten the best of him as well. "Wait for the big transports. The ones that look like they can hold about 12 large barrels of blasting jelly" Sento said.

Their eyes scanned heavily at the ground below them, the first two security vehicles has appeared, and close behind them, a third. The looked like armored satomobile than anything else. Each metal plated satomobile held three metal bending soldiers. They looked to be military police, each one equipped with overlapping metal plated armor, an insignia of the lotus party on their left shoulder plate, and the Republic City counsel emblem on their right.

Some wore black baseball caps, they looked the most relaxed. Others wore officers covers and the ones that could be defined as military police had worn full on heard gear. Something that you'd see out of mid evil times, their metal masks had enclosed their faces, only limiting their eyes to the public. Each member had the emblems on their shoulder plates.

"Looks like they're pack'n heavy" Kenten said eagerly.

"Doesn't surprise me" Sento replied.

They looked down some more, their eyes were heavy with ambition. Soon enough, a long tan transporter had rolled slowly out of the darkness. It wasn't as well built as its security, so they'll have to be careful not to damage its contents.

"Don't go yet, wait for the second one" Sento whispered.

"How do you know there will be a second one!?" Kenten replied with a louder and harsher sounding whisper.

Sento adjusted his glasses so he got a look at the cave they were coming out of. Soon enough, a second tan transport had pulled out of the shadow of the tunnel and was followed by two other security units like the three up front.

"Because there was to much explosives confiscated at the ports, they wouldn't risk it all by keeping it in one vehicle, that's dangerous. They'd need another transport to haul all of it" Sento said. They waited a little more until the first transports rolled underneath them. He smiled and said, "You ready?"

There was no hesitation when Sento spoke those last words. Immediately Kenten had thrown himself at his enemies, the rush of wind, the surge of energy, and the pumping of blood. All of these gave him such power to attack with deadly force. Just before impact, Kenten bent his the sand hidden in the jars on his wrists into long pike-like weapons, instant ramming themselves through the helmets of the military police. The impact onto the ground had given Kenten enough leverage to launch himself backwards and onto the hood of the fist security vehicle. ultimately saving him from any force of impact from his fall.

"Pridesman! a guard yelled.

"How many?" another demanded.

As the convoy came to an abrasive halt it left the back security patrols in mass confusion. As Kenten converted the pike back into sand, the blood left behind from the man's head had left most parts muddy and unbendable for a sandbender.

The military policeman who had suffered the mass injury to the face had slumped over out of the patrol vehicle. A river of blood had rushed out the whole of his helmet and left it with a murky crimson stain.

The other soldiers lashed out, sending their metal coils into the air to subdue Kenten but as each went to lash out, their armor froze. Kenten, now standing on the hood of the armor satomobile was shocked to see each soldier frozen. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that they were actually free, their bodies trying to wretch itself free from the armor, which was at a stand still.

"You know I though we were going on three?" Sento said.

Sento held one of the small barrels under his arm, bending the sand from the inside, it formed a platform under his feet that slowly lowered him down from the cliff.

"What the hell did you do to us?" One guard had demanded.

Bits of sand had fallen from in between their metal plates. The tiny hole and miniscule areas within the armor that did not guard skin had gradual amounts of sand leaking out of them.

"You armor if filled with weak points, enough for me to take advantage of and fill your own armor with sand" Sento said with a sinister grin. "Your defense is now your greatest weakness"

Kenten had to admit, disturbed with his casual approach, but impressed. He had asked the words "How?" in his head over and over but could only come to the conclusion that he had done it within the time of the chaos. The ground was covered in dirt and dust, was it possible he could've leaked some through the slots that voided the skin on the guards shins?

Even their combat boots weren't that protective.

Sento finally set foot on the road, the sun disappearing from his rimless glasses and revealing his passive-aggressive white eyed glare. He had a set of misty eyes. Eyes that looked like they belonged to an old man who's sights slowly fading away, except Sento had better sight than that.

He reached out towards the side view mirror of the security unit, wrenching a shard from the rest of the glass, it flew right into his hands.

"Sands harder to bend once it has been turned into glass, but it's worth it." Sento said. He walked up to one of the metal bender, sweat poured from his neck as he tried to wretch himself from his metal imprisonment. More sand fell from the cracks in his armor but the position he was in left him helpless, along with all the other metal bender who could do nothing but watch.

Kenten watched, impressed with the skills that Sento had learned over the years. He had never really taken him for much of a fighter but more for technical and surveillance purposes.

A loud thrashing had whipped through the air, the snapping of metal against bone had left Sento hollering in pain. Kenten snapped into a fighting stance, thrashing out two long whips of sand from a single container. Some of the metal benders from behind had come forward to assist. Sento had been so preoccupied with the ones he had frozen that he had neglected the others.

The metal benders were no match, as Kenten launch his whips into the air, their fates were sealed. One was entangled completely in Kenten's whip. He cried for assistance from his teammates but they could do nothing. They responded by lashing out metal coils as Kenten but has been slowed down by the wall of sand that Sento had formed in front of him, taking the blows.

The man ensnared in sand was taken 10 feet into the air before being shot over the cliff. At the speed and distance he was traveling at he would not survive the fall.

His bending form was clean and precise, using two hands he sent the massive wall of sand at them. They tried to shoot their coils onto the mountain, wanting to scale up it to avoid the impact, but hadn't been aware of the sand that Sento had already sent through their armor, jamming their one and only bending ability. The impact of the sand had been like a five foot thick wall of cement, slamming them into the hood of their armored vehicles at 20 mph. Their backs had snapped immediately and made no other noises but the grunts of impact.

Sento's hand was stained with his blood. The point of impact that had hit the back of his right hand was black and blue and was starting to swell up. The back of his hand pulsed with an icy pain that didn't want to go away. The other metal benders had still been enclosed in a casing of sand. Their greatest defense had been turned against them.

Sento bent over in pain, as blood rushed from his hand.

"Get the hell over it Sento" Kenten said, forming his sand into a blade. One by one he stabbed each soldier in the neck; some screamed in horror as they watched their friends die. "We've got a job to complete"

"Yeah, of course" He replied.

Their job was nearly completed. Weeks of waiting "patiently", and soon enough their talents would reward them. Sento began to clear the sand away; revealing the road. Kenten had piled up bodies on the side of the cliff. He awaited until Sento's task was done before knocking all the bodies off the edge, and into the sea with one long vine of sand.

One by one, the lifeless corpses plunged into the deep blue ocean. A spectacular view of the cool crystal clear sea that would run into the ports of Republic City, was now harboring the bodies of its own soldiers. Sento gazed down at the massive body of water. Watching carefully as the ripples of water began to separate further apart; until it had become impossible to see. Almost in a trance, Sento watched as waves upon waves had crashed into the side of the cliff. Soon enough, after the ripples had disappeared, Sento returned to his own state of mind, and walked back to meet up with Kenten.

"Well, looks like things are all set here" Sento said as pulled each arm across his chest.

"Seemed worthless to me" Kenten pouted. "I could have been making big money; not doing some meager job with you. No offense Sento, but I always took you for more of a reconnaissance guy"

"What do you mean?" Sento asked. His glasses gave off an irritating glare from the sun that struck Kenten dead in his eyes. After stepping out of the ways of the penetrating beams if light, he spoke.

"You don't strike me as a fighter" Kenten said. "Plain and simple as that!" He finished giving off and irritated tone.

Sento gave off an innocent smile and said "Well I guess some people can just surprise you. You never know what one man has got in store" Sento said ending with a slight cheery chuckle.

Kenten had bended the sand out from underneath his cloak, and in seconds, he tore off the passenger side door of the armor unit. While Kenten was busy hot wiring; Sento had met him on his driver side. Kenten leaned out the window and said "I really think it's not that hard to figure you out Sento"

"Oh yeah?"

"Sento, you have no poker face. You can't hide anything from me" Kenten said. The engine roared to life. Black smog poured from the exhausts pipe, while Kenten adjusted his seat belt.

"Yeah, you got me!" Sento said laughing; on his way back to his transport. The goal of the mission was to at least obtain one of the armored units filled with the blasting jelly, and to await further orders.

Sento obtained his cargo that he had hid on the mountainside, and rejoined Kenten on the road. His vehicle was harder to break into, but he was still able to do it. Even so, with The Pride's mission a success, Sento was still on his. His happy, and calm presence turned dark. His breathing slowed down enough to hear his heart beat. From inside his pilot's jacket, he pulled out a white contact lens case. His eyes became watery and irritated, and he hadn't even touched them yet. Just the thought of someone touching his eye was bad enough. He opened both wide, and together pulled out fake brown contact lenses; revealing the true misty, blue eyed man.

Sento hot-wired the transport until he heard the engine sputter to life. Kenten had shot out a thumbs up to make sure Sento was all set. Sento friendly appearance turned shallow and cold. He quickly opened up the barrel of sand that he had kept from before, and pulled out a modified stun glove. Slipping it on, he saw the glove spark to life; the electricity jumped from fingertip to fingertip leaving a soothing warm feeling. A malicious grin grew upon the man's face.

Just then, every went to hell. Sento slammed the gears into drive, and without warning, slammed hard into the end of Kenten's unit. Sento saw the jerk of Kenten's hand from the side view mirror; he knew he caught him off guard. His grin turned into a hateful smile, as he began to back up. The back of the transport unit hadn't been locked, so the tailgate had dropped completely down; revealing the barrels of blasting jelly.

Sento pulled hard on the gear. He pulled it into reverse, and drove backwards. Electricity pulsated from the glove, so much that he had no control. He leaned out the side of his window, and launch a frightful amount of energy at jelly.

There was nothing more scarier than this blast. As quick as turning on a light, the explosion of red, yellow, and eventually black, had emerged; covering the side of the cliff.

"Kenten, I'd bet you saw this coming as well" Sento said, brushing the shards of glass off of his face, and pants from his windshield. The explosion had caused such a shock wave that even the Orange Mountainside had been stained back. Kenten had evaporated in the blink of an eye.

Sento looked to his passenger side, and opened the crate that had been his lunch. Gemming's banshee bird had been tied up from beak to talon; it tried to gawk and flutter its wings, but those were also useless at the moment; since Sento had broken them.

"Lunch" he said temptingly.


End file.
